Chapter 38
Rassa was an old woman with a dark face deeply lined with wrinkles.
Though she looked over ninety years old, she strangely had thick, jet-black hair that looked like that of a 19-year-old.
Her back was bent, but true to being from Ronheim, she was quite tall, so from a distance, one might have thought a young girl had come to greet us.
Rassa welcomed us warmly.
She seemed unaware that I was the princess of Arental, but unlike Bihar, she showed no concern and treated me with hospitality.
Seeing Rassa’s warm welcome, the Utar tribe chief and the tribe members finally relaxed and greeted me.
“The gods have sent me to you,” Rassa said politely to Kallius.
Kallius seemed to understand the meaning behind her words well.
“What is the message the gods want to convey to me?”
“Let us go inside and talk,” she said in a hushed tone.
Kallius glanced at me.
“Please rest in the chief’s home with the others. I will return shortly.”
“Yes, I will.”
Brentian wisely approached and led me to the chief’s house.
The Utar tribe’s movable home called a “Ker” looked exactly like a round cake when viewed from the hilltop.
The house was made by placing animal skins over a wooden frame and securing them with ropes. It was surprisingly spacious and warm.
Nearly twenty of us could fit inside comfortably, and the Utar tribe people also came in, sitting in a circle around a central hearth.
“To have Her Highness the Princess grace such a humble place,”
Vanessa grumbled beside me.
It seemed less out of concern for me and more because she was displeased herself.
Vanessa was uncomfortable sitting on the floor without a chair and hunched her shoulders tightly to avoid touching the household items stacked by the wall.
The Utar tribe chief looked embarrassed at Vanessa’s attitude.
“We apologize for hosting such a distinguished guest in this humble place. Please understand our sincere desire to honor you.”
I imagined how Kallius would respond and mirrored his gentle smile.
“Not at all. I am grateful for your warm hospitality despite the sudden visit.”
The Utar tribe people whispered something in their nomadic language that I couldn’t understand.
They glanced at me with curiosity, apparently intrigued by what I was saying.
The chief smiled brightly at my thanks and offered us warm milk tea made by mixing butter and goat’s milk.
It was a peculiar milk tea, salty and savory like it had salt sprinkled in it, with a strong butter flavor.
“What is this?”
Vanessa wrinkled her brow after smelling the unfamiliar drink.
Brentian whispered to her, unable to bear it anymore.
“To nomads, salt is more precious than gold. This is the highest honor they can offer, so please don’t complain.”
I felt my face flush with embarrassment.
Anger welled up at Vanessa’s shameful attitude toward me.
‘I can’t tolerate these careless behaviors of the maids anymore, just to avoid offending Kabala.’
I knew they were Kabala’s maids, but others probably thought they were my servants.
Whether I liked it or not, Vanessa, Lamia, and the other two maids were like my face.
So, I scolded Vanessa’s rudeness openly.
“Vanessa, you’re making me ashamed. Even animals know how to be grateful, so why do you only complain?”
Vanessa looked stunned by my rebuke, as if I insulted her worse than an animal.
“But what did I do wrong…?”
However, seeing that others were also glaring at her sharply, she quickly shut her mouth, apparently realizing she had no one to take her side here.
I took a sip of the steaming milk tea.
“…!”
A wonderful flavor spread in my mouth.
Drinking the warm tea, my frozen body was instantly warmed.
“I feel my head clearing up! It had been throbbing until now.”
Lamia whispered beside me.
She seemed to like the tea and quickly finished her cup, then asked a nearby Utar man for a refill.
“It’s true.”
After drinking the tea, as Lamia said, my symptoms of altitude sickness—tightness in the chest and headache—improved significantly.
“Do you like the taste?”
The chief asked, and I smiled brightly, nodding.
“It’s very delicious! May I have another cup?”
“Of course.”
Seeing I liked it, the Utar tribe people finally relaxed and smiled.
Other maids, seeing me and Lamia enjoy the milk tea, cautiously sipped theirs as well.
“Delicious…!”
“Good.”
At the maids’ reactions, Vanessa sat sulkily before storming out.
People burst into laughter upon seeing that.
Feeling embarrassed, I laughed along but sighed inwardly.
‘The maids need urgent training.’
While Kallius was talking with Rassa, I enjoyed the special treatment from the Utar tribe.
Though among strangers in a strange place, for some reason, it felt like I had come home.
At that time, Kallius sat across from Rassa, the blazing fire between them.
“Your Majesty, what you have long sought is near.”
Her voice was feeble and shaky with age, but her conviction was clear.
Kallius raised one eyebrow.
“What is this precious thing you have sought for so long?”
Rassa smiled faintly.
“The gods do not reveal everything to me. Only they know all. But since you are the subject of this prophecy, you will understand what the gods mean on your own.”
Though Kallius thought what she spoke of might be the lost relic, he found it puzzling.
The relic my mother guarded should be with Kabala.
“Are you sure it is near?”
“I only convey the voice of the gods.”
“Indeed. I do not doubt you, only that it is different from what I expected.”
“Life is full of strange events beyond plans and expectations.”
Whether Rassa knew Kallius’s troubled thoughts or not, she smiled gently and continued.
“Be vigilant, Your Majesty. Doubt and suspect. As the precious thing approaches, so do the enemies.”
“Is that so.”
“Your enemies have already drawn their blades before you. You must distinguish who is friend and foe.”
Rassa’s prophecy was cryptic and hard to understand.
She gently reassured the troubled Kallius.
“There is no need to be anxious. As long as you do not forsake the gods, all will become clear when the time comes.”
She covered the fire with sand, extinguishing it, then stood.
“Shall we return to the group? The chief has prepared a banquet.”
“You always do so much for us.”
Rassa looked wise as she lifted her dark eyes to Kallius, who stood with her.
“You were born as our king. Whatever happens, we are your people. Such words are not proper, not proper at all.”
Speaking firmly, she walked slowly with her cane out of the Ker.
Not long after Kallius and Rassa left, they returned.
Rassa entered the chief’s Ker and looked deeply at each of our group one by one.
Then, suddenly, she struck Brentian on the shoulder with her cane.
“Why do you do that, Rassa?”
Brentian, sitting, looked up at the old woman with a wronged expression after being suddenly hit.
Rassa clicked her tongue.
“You think too much. If you think too much, even with enough wisdom, you miss the right answer and chase the wrong one. Think less, and instead use that time to do another errand for your master.”
Brentian, Kallius’s closest aide and a fairly influential noble from Ronheim, was treated without hesitation by Rassa.
She seemed to reserve her manners only for Kallius.
Brentian grumbled as if used to Rassa’s behavior.
“Rassa, you always nag me. You’re especially harsh only to me.”
“I do so because your talents are wasted otherwise.”
Their interaction was so warm and familiar, like a grandmother and grandson in a fairy tale, that I couldn’t help but smile.
After coldly passing Brentian by, Rassa noticed me and approached with a smile.
But she suddenly stopped about a step away, looking surprised.
“…?”
Puzzled, I watched as Rassa slowly came closer and whispered in a small voice.
“You are someone who has been given a second chance by the gods.”
