Chapter 26
Taking Care

“How did you sleep last night?” Duogaluo looked at the girl yawning on the floor. “Get up and eat something, then come with me to my sister’s house. She should be back by now.”

“Mm…” Nagu rubbed her sleepy eyes. She didn’t know when Douogaluo had returned. When she opened her eyes, Hamoyin was already gone, replaced by Duogaluo’s figure walking around the room. This made Nagu wonder if what happened last night was just a dream.

Duogaluo glanced back at the groggy Nagu. “Still sleepy? Then, sleep a bit more. I’m still preparing things.”

“I’m not sleeping anymore.” Nagu got up from the floor, stretched, and walked towards Duogaluo. He was standing at a wooden table full of tools and various strange, half-finished ornaments, hammering away. “What are you preparing?”

“This.” A small, peacock-green ball, not yet fully polished, appeared in front of Nagu.

A rough hole had been drilled through the center of the ball. Duoagluo held it up in front of Nagu before putting it back on the table to continue polishing. “It’s for you to wear on your hand, or you can wear it around your neck or ankle if you prefer.”

“Ah… thank you.” Nagu stood curiously beside Duogaluo, watching him polish the ball. His ‘workbench’ was covered with many colorful, mysterious minerals. A grayish-white stone had been mostly chiseled into pieces in a bowl, and several small bundles of dried herbs were soaking in greenish water. The edge of the wooden table was lined with many stone tablets carved with text. Besides these noticeable items, there were many other things whose purposes Nagu couldn’t discern.

“What do you want to see?” Duogaluo moved aside to give Nagu a better view.

“I want to see this.” Nagu pointed to the stone tablets with writing on them. It was her first time seeing the script here. “What do they say?”

“Some records and formulas.” He handed the top stone tablet to Nagu. “I borrowed them from the witch. Can you understand them?”

Nagu took the tablet and looked at it for a while, only to realize that she couldn’t understand the intricate writing. Did this mean she was illiterate?

While Nagu was contemplating the need to learn the script, Duogaluo finished making her bracelet. “Put it on, and then we’ll go to my sister’s house.”

“Is just wearing the bracelet enough?” Nagu obediently extended her hand so Duogaluo could secure the bracelet on her wrist. “Don’t I need to paint those golden patterns on my body? I saw you all have them.”

Duogaluo smiled slightly at Nagu. “Those are painted after the first mating, which means only adults can have them. You don’t need them yet.”

Nagu blushed at Duogaluo’s smile. “Oh, I thought everyone had them.”

“It’s only a matter of time if you choose to live in our village.”

“Haha…” Feeling like she had asked a silly question, Nagu awkwardly changed the topic. Mating was something she really didn’t want to think about! “Shall we go find your sister now?”

“Eat something before we go,” Duogaluo said, picking up a wooden pole and using it to hook down a package hanging from the ceiling. When he opened the small package, Nagu saw three or four thick, green cakes inside, shaped like a novice’s attempt at frying eggs. “Here you go.”

Nagu took a bite of the cake. It had no flavor and was hard to chew. “What’s this made of?”

“Insects and vegetable paste.” Duogaluo didn’t seem interested in eating, just urging Nagu to eat. “It’s good for your body, especially for someone as skinny as you.”

Insects. Oh my god.

Nagu held the cake in her mouth, unable to swallow or spit it out. Maybe she should just faint…

Seeing Nagu’s sudden dazed look, Duogaluo asked, “What’s wrong? Doesn’t it taste good?”

“Mmm… mmm…” Feeling guilty about eating someone else’s food, Nagu quickly shook her head and swallowed the cake whole. Having something to eat was good enough, and insects were nutritious. “Let’s go, I’m done.”

She tried not to think about whether the insects in the cake were larvae or some kind of arthropod.

“Have another one, eat more.” Seeing Nagu eating so happily, Duogaluo enthusiastically handed her another cake. “It’s okay if you finish them all.”

“No… I’m full, thank you.”

“Really?”

“Really!”

Duogaluo could only sigh at Nagu’s small appetite as he put away his special nutritious cakes. “Let’s go then. I hope my sister agrees to take you in.”

…

“No.”

“Why not!!”

Nagu awkwardly hid behind Duogaluo, staring at the ground. Duogaluo was currently arguing with his sister, essentially a sibling quarrel. Behind the slightly chubby, dark-skinned woman stood many younger girls, including Momoli, whom Nagu had met yesterday. None of these girls had golden totems on their bodies.

“You see these little brats behind me? I have another one in my belly! And now you want to add another unknown girl for me to take care of? Are you trying to anger me on purpose?” The woman kept poking Duogaluo’s shoulder. “I’m pregnant, Duogaluo, I’m pregnant! I won’t agree to take on more work.”

“You were pregnant yesterday and still went to see Buda!” Dojaro retorted loudly. “And Lali is not an unknown girl; she is a lucky person sent by the Mother Goddess.”

Lucky person? I really can’t live up to that title. Maybe I should be called the Queen of Bad Luck.

Nagu felt cold sweat forming on her forehead. She quietly poked Duogaluo and whispered, “Forget it, I…”

“If Mom doesn’t want her, didn’t the old witch say she needed someone to take care of her recently? She can go there.” Momoli interrupted Nagu, pointing at her and speaking loudly to Duogaluo. “The old witch’s eyesight is failing.”

“Yes, you can send her to the witch,” Duogaluo’s sister said, lifting her chin as if to chase them away. “Or you can take care of her yourself. Is she an adult? If she is, isn’t that perfect?”

“…,” Duogaluo, with a dark expression, took Nagu’s hand. “Forget it, I shouldn’t have come to you.”

“Are you blaming me?” His sister glared at him, looking unreasonable. “I have to take care of nine girls! Adding one more will kill me!”

“Yes, yes, it’s my fault.” Duogaluo had already decided to keep Nagu at his house. Without saying more, he led Nagu towards the door.

“Wait, I have something to ask you.” Seeing Duogaluo turn to leave, the woman stopped him. “What about the sacrificial ceremony? Is it really going to be moved up as the chief decided?”

“He decided, so we have to follow.”

“Will anything happen…”

“Who knows.” Leaving this irresponsible answer, Duogaluo led Nagu out of his sister’s house without looking back.

Outside, Nagu could still hear the girls inside chattering loudly and Duogaluo’s sister scolding him.

“From now on, you’ll live at my house. I don’t want to go around asking those women who have time to take care of you,” Duogaluo said irritably. “Just follow me around and do some chores. It’s not too tiring.”

“… Didn’t Momoli just say there’s an old witch in the village who needs someone to take care of her?

Considering her situation, Nagu thought it would be better not to follow the conspicuous Duogaluo around. Besides, she was curious about the witch. Getting close to the witch might help her figure out what Hamoyin’s scales were used for.

In Nagu’s mind, it was contradictory that Hamoyin didn’t want to leave Azuran’s territory but still provided scales regularly. If she were mistreated, she would always be thinking of escaping. But Hamoyin handed over her scales as a ‘price’ without complaint, so the use of the scales must be important. Nagu only knew that Hamoyin’s scales were used in sacrifices. But ‘sacrifice,’ according to Hamoyin, was a transaction with the Mother Goddess Tuwa. Different things could buy different things. So what could Hamoyin’s scales buy? Could it be that what the scales could be exchanged for was the reason Hamoyin didn’t want to leave?

To understand the reason and persuade Hamoyin to leave, Nagu is even more determined to take care of the old witch. “Why don’t you let me take care of her?”

Dogaluo thought for a moment. “Although that’s possible, staying with me would be much easier. Besides, I don’t think you’ll get used to living with the witch.”

“It’s fine, just let me go,” Nagu insisted. “I’m good at taking care of people.”

“Really?” Dogaluo looked at Nagu with some doubt. He thought she seemed more like someone who needed to be taken care of, given her pitiful appearance and injuries. “Why don’t you stay at my place until you recover? Your leg is still injured, and the witch’s place…”

“It doesn’t matter!” Nagu, unaware that Duogaluo saw her as a helpless lamb, was determined to stay with the witch. “My injury isn’t serious anymore. I’ll recover quickly, so it’s fine.”

“Are you sure?”

“I’m sure!”

“I’ll take you to see her first, then you can decide.”

“I’ve already decided!”

Seeing Nagu’s confident look, Duogaluo thought he could only deter her with reality. Soon, Nagu was led to the witches’ residence in the village.

One look and Nagu was stunned. Honestly, this place was completely different from the village’s simple style. It looked like the home of an old witch from a fairy tale who would kill princes and princesses!

This area was separated from the village by a dug trench filled with white animal bones, with inscriptions carved on them. Inside the separated area were three independent stone houses, with rows of dried animal heads on the roofs, looking very intimidating. The place was not only remote but also dimly lit compared to the rest of the village. Surrounding the area were tall, dark green, thorny plants emitting a bitter and astringent smell. The fence around the plants was covered with dried animal entrails, whose rotting smell mixed with the plants’ bitterness made Nagu feel nauseous, her face wrinkling in disgust.

Duogaluo laughed at Nagu’s expression. “You can still change your mind. The village children don’t like coming near the witches’ place. Although the witches aren’t dangerous, their work makes them look scary.”

Nagu shook her head, covering her nose. She had survived prison, killed a leopard, grabbed meat worms with her hands, been swept into an underground river without drowning, and even eaten insect cakes. She wouldn’t give up because of a bit of bitterness and a haunted-looking place.

Seeing Nagu’s unwavering determination, Duogaluo could only knock on the blood-stained wooden door. “Open up. I brought someone to take care of you!”