A Story of Seasons: The Story of Jill | Volume II: Summer

Chapter XI: Keep Moving Forward

You remember it all, right?

Do memories stay with you after you leave the world?

As soon as I spotted that entrance sign again, my skin suddenly went cold, even with the sun blazing over my head. All of it came flooding back to me at once. Your warm skin. The earthy smell of your shirt. That bright gleam in your eyes. Your beautiful, beautiful smile.

...

Why did you have to go?

******

"That's the first time I've ever seen her cry." Nak mutters, pulling down at the yellow cap on his head that once belonged to Flak. He is sitting in a circle surrounded by other Harvest Sprites, each wearing various colors. They are sitting behind the Great Willow, with blades of grass swaying around them.

"But... What can we do?" Karaf asks softly, fidgeting with the bottom of his sleeve. "Guts won't let us help unless he gets paid, and I really don't want to find out what happens if we don't listen to him..."

"Who cares about stupid medals?!" A Harvest Sprite dressed in green exclaims in frustration. "If it weren't for Jill, we wouldn't be back here!"

"Isn't she the reason we were sent away in the first place?" A Harvest Sprite dressed in purple asks doubtfully, his eyes narrowing.

"No, the King did that! That mean, mean King!" Nik retorts in frustration, flailing his arms. "Jill is helping us!"

"I dunno...Supiri may have a point." A Harvest Sprite dressed in yellow says, his head lowered. "If she wasn't being all lazy and stuff, maybe none of this would've happened."

"Seriously, Beito? Come on, you're a nurture sprite!" Nak snaps, darting his eyes at him. "Think about Flak, about Miss Goddess! They wouldn't want you saying things like that!"

The other sprites lower their heads somberly after Flak's name is mentioned. Nak covers his mouth, shaking his head.

"S-Sorry." He stutters. "I promised myself I wouldn't bring him up like that again." 

Karaf lowers his eyebrows skeptically, his expression troubled.

"No, it's fine Nak, but don't think Flak has left our minds. He's always there..." His mouth quivers, and he doesn't say anything further to prevent himself from crying. Nak nods his head, regretting his words. He clears his throat. 

"Well... Anyway, this is the time to take action! There hasn't been a drop of rain in weeks, and all the plants are dying because of it. With Miss Goddess gone, we should work our hardest to play her role!"

"Just us?" Beito asks timidly, wringing the bottom of his jacket. "But... We don't even have our full teams back yet. Where would we even start?"

"Leave that to me."

The sprites turn around, and Mick is there standing with a bag of medals in his hand, clasping them tightly as his expression remains serious. Nak widens his eyes, shocked.

"Mick? Where the heck did you get all those medals?!" He exclaims in shock. Mick shakes his head, declining to answer.

"Not important. Helping Jill is important, and I know how we can do it." He takes the bag and dumps the medals on the ground in the center of them. "Everyone, take some medals and give them to Guts. We're not gonna let another farmer of this valley down."