A Daughter's Resolve

Night quickly passed as morning arrived. Only a few villagers came out of their homes to do some minor work and check on their crops. This wasn't because they expected a harvest but it was more so to ensure the safety of their crop fields.

The young girls hauled water from the nearby well to fill up their water tanks while the wives diligently prepared breakfast for the family. The men were responsible for checking the crops, tending to the livestock, cutting and gathering wood from the forest.

Ingram sat In front of his house with a bandage wrapped around his head as he fiddled with a rope while humming. He had the same brown tunic on with his old black leather glove.

He looked like an amiable, unassuming fellow and would occasionally glance at his surroundings, exchanging morning greetings with the passersby and neighbours.

"Honey~ breakfast is ready."

A gleeful female voice caught his attention as he gently placed the ropes on the floor and made his way inside. Once he came to the dining table, his wife and daughter were already there waiting for him.

Rosella blushed heavily once her gaze locked with his which she immediately avoided so she wouldn't embarrass herself in front of their daughter. However, unfortunately for her, Ephmi had a smile on her face as if she knew what was going on.

Seeing all this, Ingram paid it little to no mind as he promptly made his way towards his seat. However before he sat down, he made sure to plant a kiss on his wife's head, prompting a shy grin from his daughter.

Breakfast was wheat porridge with cooked vegetables. Although it tasted a little bland to him, it was better than nothing, besides it provided his body with the necessary nutrients. As they ate and conversed, he would sometimes flirt with his wife and tease his daughter.

However Ephmi was mostly silent, only smiling and nodding from time to time. It was as if she was thinking deeply about something as she slowly ate her food.

"Ephmi, you seem rather distracted by something, what's the matter?"

Rosella enquired. She really couldn't take her daughter's silence anymore.

"I agree with your mother, you've been unusually quiet. Do you perhaps have anything to share with us or...are we making you uncomfortable?"

Ingram asked a little teasingly with a smile on his face.

Hearing their questions, she just gave a nervous laugh as she played with her hair.

"Ha-haha... actually the-there's no problem. N-No problem at all."

"So why have you been silent? Is there an issue with the food — gasp! — are you sick???"

"..."

"Uhhh...no mother I'm fine... nothing's wrong with—"

"—Then what is it?"

Avoiding the worried gaze of her mother, she could only spit out what she had to say:

"The truth is, I... I have some good news to share."

Their curiosity was piqued once they heard this.

Ingram observed her body language and gestures, noticing her clear nervousness layered with a bit of shyness. He could already somewhat guess what sort of news she had to share.

'...Hmm, she does seem to be of age after all.'

"I've… I've committed myself to someone." She dropped her head low, and twiddled her fingers. "I couldn't tell you both yesterday because father had a little accident so I decided to leave it till this morning."

There was a brief silence in the house as they both stared at her. Her head was still low, avoiding their questioning gazes but her smile never departed from her face.

Rosella heaved a huge sigh of relief.

"Haaa.. you made me very worried... why didn't you just say that in the first—oh wait, that's indeed good news. You're already a mature woman after all."

She looked at her with a huge smile on her face as she stood up and gave her a hug.

"I'm very happy for you my dear. Congrats."

Although she was glad that her daughter had found someone to commit herself to, she was a little sad.

Ephmi was only her only child so she couldn't help but feel a small sense of loss when she heard what her daughter said. However, she was genuinely happy for her daughter. An early marriage was a blessing for any young girl.

In the New World, most especially villages, it wasn't strange for girls even at the young age of eleven to get married. This was all attributed to reproduction. It was a fact that younger girls had higher chances of childbirth which was why they married very early.

The New World was almost like the middle ages. A woman was already ripe for marriage once she hit puberty. The same thing also applied to men.

Ingram was seventeen when he married Rosella who was thirteen years of age at the time.

He just smiled once he heard the news from his daughter. It seemed like Ephmi was following in her mother's footsteps. She turned thirteen just last month after all.

"So who is this brave man that has my daughter stammering like an idiot?" he quipped, staring at her with a sarcastic grin.

Her eyelids twitched.

She raised her head and met her father's taunting gaze, then huffed and puffed out her chest childishly.

"Hmph! Father, It's because of the cold… yes that's it… it's the cold."

She dropped her head again and drew imaginary circles on the table with her right index finger.

"Bu-But, uh...you know, he's handsome sooo… well...uh...maybe it might be that as well."

Her initial confident reply was thrown in the bin once she began to murmur about his looks.

"What? He's even got you rambling like a drunkard as well? Now I'm even more curious about this person."

"..."

Rosella just shook her head in frustration at his clear sarcasm. She was already accustomed to how he behaved with their daughter. However, she too was curious about the person.

"Ugh father you're too mean... by the way... it's Re-Renard."

"Hyatt's son?"

This time it was Rosella who asked the question to which she nodded.

Hearing the name, it didn't take long for Ingram to remember this person from his memories. Renard was the second child and only son of Hyatt Ashfrid. They lived about five houses away from them.

As the only son, he was already guaranteed to inherit everything his father owned. Since that was the case, any girl he married didn't need to worry much about not being taken care of properly in the future.

For any normal father, this would be a cause for celebration. After all, which father didn't want their daughter to find happiness of her own.

Family was a thing of pride for most people so finding a partner to start one with was seen as a blessing.

But...he was different.

The truth was, he was neither happy nor sad for the young girl who was about to begin a new chapter in her life.

He felt absolutely nothing for her.

Whether she married or not didn't cause any ripple in his heart. After all, she held little to no value in his eyes.

So he just went with the flow. She was free to do whatever she wanted. Although he had the memories of the previous occupant, these people were nothing more than strangers to him.

These were just his thoughts.

On the surface however, his behaviour was a perfect replica of the previous Ingram. Completely different from his true feelings.

"Pfft hahaha… like mother, like daughter indeed"

He laughed as he stared at her, flashing her a knowing smile.

"You know... when your mother was your age, her eyes were sharp. She was in such a hurry to have me in bed th—"

"—Father!!!!"

"—Dear!!... you shouldn't say that."

"What? You know I'm right. You were— "

"—Ahem." Ephmi cleared her throat, interrupting whatever was about to come out of his mouth. "I-I just wanted to inform you both so I'll be taking my leave. Renard will also be dropping by later today."

After saying this, she scurried away with her food.

Despite her abrupt escape, she was overjoyed in her heart. Even though he didn't say it, she knew her father had already accepted her husband to be.

She was aware of how much of a doting parent they were which only escalated when she lost her brother two years ago. That loss shattered their hearts, most especially her father even if he didn't show it on the surface.

She once accidentally caught him sobbing uncontrollably in a corner deep into the night. It was the first time she had ever seen her reliable father in such a weak state and it felt like her heart was about to be torn to shreds.

It was at that moment she realised that her father was bottling up such painful emotions, hiding it behind a façade of happiness.

Seeing that, she was determined to make him happy. To try and fill that void in his heart.

This marriage wasn't only a good thing for her but also for them. If they could have a son-in-law, wouldn't it be almost the same thing as having a son?

Was what she thought.

Besides, she would now be able to give them grandchildren. This was her own way of soothing their hearts.

The focus of her efforts however was completely oblivious to her feelings.

"She didn't even allow me to finish." He sighed and shook his head. "Young children nowadays, they're too hasty."

Rosella on the other hand just smiled bitterly.

"Surely you had to see this coming. What exactly did you expect? Some father-daughter bonding over such a topic?"

Her husband was just too outspoken with their daughter. However, it was part of his charm and she loved that side of him.

She was aware that he only behaved like this when he was extremely happy so it came as no surprise to her.

Looking at his wife he grinned, "But of course. Just like our husband-wife "bonding" last night. Maybe she even heard your loud moa—"

"—Don't!!... Ugh... please just finish your meal."

There was a slight blush on her face as she spoke.

However, that only made him tease her more as they ate their food. He didn't mind playing the part of a loving husband and father for now, It took nothing from him.

After the meal, he kissed his wife after which he went back outside to pick up the ropes and head into the forest to gather some wood.

The forest itself wasn't far from the village entrance. Although it housed a few demi-human villages deep within who kept to themselves and some wild animals, the outskirts posed little to no danger for a normal person.

As he walked around the village, he could now completely make out its structure. Tall wooden fences which acted as walls encompassed the houses and huts that were scattered around.

The village itself wasn't large, boasting a population of about four hundred people.

There were two watchtowers in the village. One close to the farm lands just behind the village and one in the direction of the forest.

As he passed through the central square, he noticed the large bell situated there which was used to signal the villagers for any important announcement or gathering.

He was glad that this wasn't a frontier village which had the occasional run-ins with monsters. They never lasted and most of the time the villagers were forced to abandon the land.

Eventually reaching the entrance, he was met with two guards who each held poorly made spears. There was also another guard in the watchtower who had a bow in hand.

They were responsible for the security of the village.

Although they couldn't be compared to veterans like the Adventurers, they could still fend off a few wild animals if they worked properly together.

After some small talk with the guards, he left for the forest as he kept thinking of how to better make good use of his time today.