The Eccentric Wanderer
1038 Words
Chapter five: The Eccentric Wanderer
“Look! It’s a wild bear!!”
Iris shouted loudly with a scared expression on her face as she pointed at the direction behind the nobleman. They all instantly reacted as they turned in the direction Iris was pointing. But upon doing so, there was no one in that direction.
It was just a ruse. Of course there would be no bear. It's impossible to have a wild bear roaming in this big garden area with guards and servants around. Seeing the status of the vicinity, it must be protected whereas no one could just come in and out. And upon doing so, it gives her a few seconds to run away from the opposite direction and vanish from their sight.
“What nonse—”
The noble man exclaimed as he turned his head back to Iris, but when he did, Iris was nowhere to be seen from her last position. The noble man could only stare at the air appalled, while the maids and priests were freaking out at her sudden disappearance.
“Where did she go?”
Hearing his question, the maids were not able to answer immediately as they were also dumbfounded. But when the nobleman swiftly turned his attention to them with wide eyes, expecting an answer, the maids including the priest flienched fearing what would happen afterward as they could only give their honest answers.
“I have no idea, my lord…”
“I didn’t see where she ran to…”
“I was looking out for the bear…”
They all muttered with a low tone of voice. With those answers, the nobleman couldn’t help but feel infuriated. “How useless. Find her! Immediately!”
He ordered loudly which made his servants scatter around in utter panic, leaving the high priest and nobleman alone in the vast garden beside the flowing river.
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The sun is starting to set as the sky has changed into a bright orange. Iris could feel the soft breeze starting to get colder as the night continued to go deeper. Iris hugged herself as she found herself lost in this unfamiliar place with no one to ask for help.
“The hell am I?” “Ugh, seriously this skirt is so annoying…” Iris grumbled as her fancy skirt was caught by a twig.
Out of spite, she pulled the skirt roughly, leading it to tear significantly. Creating a slit on the side of her long skirt. Iris can only groan as she could feel her luck slowly running out.
She knew that a lot of people must be looking for her upon seeing that she was supposed to be the daughter of that stern nobleman. That is why she needs to hurry. Running away won’t solve the problem. And Iris knew that. She needs to find a way to survive in this new world. Maybe this is a new opportunity for her to start a new life.
As Iris was running away, she found herself once again lost in what looked like an abandoned woodland. The area is not that dense and it looked pretty safe to spend the night in. As she ventured deeper to find a perfect spot, Iris could hear a loud man's voice in the distance making a racket.
Because of that, Iris couldn't help but be alert. Maybe it was one of the men that was looking for her. Iris instantly rushed to hide behind a big tree, peeking discreetly at the direction of the commotion.
“Help! Is anyone out there?! Please help me!!” A man in what seems to be in his early 30's wearing a black ragged cloak was clinging for his dear life on one of the tree branches. His face was full of terror. Tears and snots are running down on his face.
Just what made him so scared out of his wits that he climbed that high on a tree branch? And the answer is down below him.
Iris shifted her line of sight down and upon seeing the thing that made that man shake in fear, Iris facepalmed.
It was a stray dog with a stick on his mouth. His tail was wagging in excitement as he looked up at the man with enthusiasm. It seemed like the dog just wanted to play with the man.
Iris decided to step in the scene and helped the poor man. The stranger looked like a harmless person, just seeing his appearance and state. And if he tries to do anything funny, Iris knows that she could definitely take down that man.
“What the hell are you doing up there?” Iris questioned the man with a weary tone and look on her face.
She couldn't understand how this dog could scare him this much. Nevertheless, each person has a different phobia.
Upon seeing another person’s presence, the man smiled in relief as he stared down at Iris.“As you can see, that dog is trying to hurt me!”
He responded frantically as he pointed at the harmless brown dog. Iris looked momentarily at the excited dog with the same weary expression and shifted her line of sight back at the man on the tree.
“Uhh, no. It's clearly just trying to play with you.” Iris responded calmly with a baffled tone of voice. How could he not see that the dog was just seeking affection from him?
The man shook his head desperately as he clung onto the thick branch even more. “I beg of you. Get that thing away from meee!!”
He pleaded with a very evident distressed tone. His voice even echoed in the area causing Iris to plug her finger in her ears. To stop the man from attracting more people and wildlife, Iris chose to settle it at once.
“Hayst, fine.” She muttered under her breath as she lightly shook her head. Hearing that answer, the man couldn’t help but cry in happiness seeing Iris trying to help him.
Iris went to the nearby bushes, picking up the appropriate thickness of its small branch. She then calmly and confidently approached the excited animal.
- Writer
