The Seed Thief

Vol. 2 Chapter 7.4

“You should have seen it. No matter how much they hit her, she didn’t make a single sound. It’s like she doesn’t even feel pain.”

At their words, Lulu glanced down at her own arm. The arm bound by iron chains was, from months of not eating properly, as thin as a tree branch.

But beyond being dry, there wasn’t a single mark from the beatings she’d received yesterday.

When Lulu had collapsed at the old woman’s house and opened her eyes again, she found herself in a strange, unfamiliar place. Towering stone walls. A vast plaza, unlike anything she’d seen in the forest. And strange people dressed in a variety of clothes.

She was chained, her arms and legs bound to a wooden stake.

They’d asked her many questions. Her name, her age—those she could answer. But then they’d moved on to things she couldn’t comprehend.

“Is it true that you conspired with the enemy?”

“Did you kidnap those villagers for your magic rituals?”

“Did you steal the tax shipment from Solbury?”

To such questions, Lulu had replied honestly that she didn’t know. She couldn’t even understand their questions in the first place. Frustrated, the most robust among them approached with whips and clubs and struck her, sending her sprawling.

She’d been terrified at first, instinctively shielding her belly. But then… nothing. She felt pressure, the force of their blows, but no pain.

Realizing their attacks had no effect, they grew more agitated, their words became a torrent of insults. Then, they resorted to different tactics. No water, no food.

When she tried to drink the rainwater that dripped through a crack in the ceiling, they dragged her underground and locked her away.

‘How long has it been…?’

She couldn’t tell if it was day or night because there was no sky. Lulu had given up trying to keep track of time. It was meaningless anyway.

From the guards’ conversations, she learned that she was imprisoned beneath the city and that the people here were determined to see her dead.

She also learned other things. The kingdom this city belonged to had been embroiled in a great war with another nation and the former rebel faction. Because of this, the royal family suffered a major blow, but fortunately, the king’s brother, leading the entire army, had turned the tide of the war.

However, what she learned wasn’t just about the human situation. Lulu looked across at the empty prison cell opposite her. Just a few days ago, a woman had been there. As thin as Lulu, with injuries all over her body.

At first, the woman flinched at the sight of Lulu and retreated to the corner of her cell. Then, perhaps out of boredom, she started talking.

Lulu had been wary at first, but there was nothing to do in this prison and the woman was not making a fuss like the old woman in the forest, Lulu eventually let her guard down.

After a few exchanges, the woman sighed.

“Where on earth have you been living? You’re completely clueless… And to think you’re even pregnant… No, that man you were with was trash.”

Lulu bristled at the insult. She might be a fool, but she wouldn’t tolerate anyone speaking ill of Er. The woman let out a long, weary sigh.

“It might be too late, but listen to me. People…”

The woman taught Lulu about the world that Er had never taught her. Betrayal, blackmail, framing. And many other terrible things a person can go through.