The sound of the storm was enough to bury everyone’s words, but Ewen’s deep and calm voice still reached Cinderella’s ears with perfect clarity. In an instant, all the thunder and rainfall seed to recede as if the whole world had vanished, leaving only the two of them conversing in silence.
Thirty-three years ago...
Cinderella looked at Ewen’s profile, while Ewen’s eyes gazed into the distance.
"When I was born, the Rage of Scorched Earth had already ended for many years, but the nations still hadn’t recovered from the wounds of war. Life then was awful; not only was there a scarcity of resources, but the order had yet to be completely reestablished. Fortunately, I lived in a relatively decent family."
Ewen wasn’t just recounting his life to Cinderella; he was gradually reminiscing about all of this. Although this was obviously Ewen’s life, with the long passage of ti, looking back inevitably added a sense of estrangent.
"My family loved very much, especially my mother, who supported all of my decisions. If I loved sothing, she would allow to try it."
Ewen tried to recall his mother’s face, but regrettably, he couldn’t rember it. No matter how much he dug into his mory, he could only see a blurred face hidden behind the mist.
"At eighteen, I wanted to earn money. I wanted to live a better life. For that, I said goodbye to my mother and left ho."
Ewen paused, trying hard to smile, "I lived in the Narrow Countries... You, a kid from a different era, surely couldn’t imagine what the Narrow Countries looked like back then."
"It was an incredibly chaotic ti. The aftermath of the Rage of Scorched Earth still affected that land. In the gaps between nations, evil road unchecked, and bandits and thieves were commonplace back then."
"Truly unimaginable."
Cinderella echoed, having encountered nothing noteworthy or dangerous on her journey, she had rather beco the hazard, outwitting those with ill intentions.
"I was robbed as soon as I left ho. Luckily, I was just a poor kid, with nothing of value except my life, and they weren’t interested in my life. After giving a beating, they let go."
Ewen chuckled to himself, "What a terrible start."
"I lived in the wilderness for a long ti, usually traveling by day and climbing a tree at night to find a comfortable position to sleep. The most interesting part was, one night I was awoken, and when I looked down, there was a pack of wolves gathered under the tree, howling incessantly.
I was exhausted and hungry, but I didn’t want to die there. I hadn’t even touched the doorstep of this colorful world, it would be too much of a failure to die there.
I snapped off a tree branch, wielding it like a stick. Whenever a wolf tried to climb the tree, I’d take a swing at its head."
Ewen gestured as if swinging his arm, "I battled with the pack of wolves until dawn. Only when the sunlight broke did they reluctantly leave, and I didn’t co down imdiately, spending a difficult morning on the tree, ensuring the pack was far gone before reluctantly climbing down."
"Whew, back then I thought that was the worst mont of my life."
Ewen joked, "But compared to what I went through afterward, that mont wasn’t so bad."
"I was lost in the wilderness, which was really dangerous. Luckily, I found a railway, and by following it, I could always find a town. I walked along with determination for a long ti, but eventually, I collapsed. When I ca to, I had been rescued by a good Samaritan who took to a town."
Speaking of the good Samaritan, Ewen was filled with gratitude.
"Everyone called him Red Nose because he had a big, bulbous, rosaceous nose, just like soone out of a fairy tale. His job was driving trains, hauling coal from the nearby mine back to the town. I happened to collapse on the tracks just as his train was about to pass."
Cinderella said, "A wondrous encounter."
"Indeed, a wondrous encounter," recalling these events brought a sincere smile to Ewen’s face, "My family claid their way of education was utterly supportive. I’d rather say it was absolute free-range. I hadn’t had any formal education, nor could I read."
"Red Nose took in. I helped him shovel coal during the day, and at night he taught to read, providing an adequate education within his limited capabilities."
The vague mories gradually sharpened, and Ewen felt as if he relived that ti, feeling perfectly at ease.
"I recounted my experiences to Red Nose, and he remarked that although I didn’t seem old, my adventures surpassed many others’. I didn’t think much of it, but he suggested writing a diary."
Ewen rubbed his temples, "Red Nose ntioned that the human brain is a fragile thing; if you don’t deliberately rember sothing, it would silently slip away."
"So, I started keeping a diary, recording my days in the wilderness without missing a word."
Ewen paused and continued, "In truth, I mainly wanted to practice writing back then. After all, I had just learned how to write. I dread of making good money and living a better life. I couldn’t stay in that small town shoveling endless coal with Red Nose all my life."
"I discussed these ideas with Red Nose, and he fully supported my ambitions. He said young people should engage with the tides of the era—either to achieve greatness or to get beaten badly. Thoughts alone require money, especially since I relied on Red Nose for food and lodging. I took several jobs in the town, gathering funds."
Even now, Ewen still fondly rembers those days. It was such an ordinary and quiet story, yet Cinderella was enthralled by it.
Cinderella was very curious, curious about what Ewen had experienced to beco the person he was now.
"Red Nose was right; the human brain indeed is a fragile thing," Ewen said calmly, "It was such an ordinary day, Red Nose didn’t stand steady when boarding the train, fell, hit his head on the ground, and just died like that."
Ewen smiled and sighed inappropriately, "Life’s unpredictability, I suppose that’s how it is."
"Red Nose was well-regarded in the town; everyone called him the good gentleman because he always helped others free of charge. Everyone in the town attended his funeral. Red Nose had no family, and I presided over the funeral."
Ewen fell silent, needing so ti to finish telling the story in one breath.
"Red Nose didn’t have many savings, nor did I. I spent all my money to buy him a burial plot and erected a headstone. When asked what should be etched on it, I realized I didn’t even know Red Nose’s real na, but it would be too ridiculous to carve ’Red Nose’ on it."
"Here rests a noble person."
Ewen said, "This is the epitaph I left for Red Nose."
"How wonderful..."
Cinderella murmured softly, looking at Ewen once more, as if she understood him more deeply, understanding where Ewen’s naive-good-nature personality ca from.
"I left the town. By then, it had been two years since I left ho, and then I ca here, to Free Port."
When ntioning the land beneath his feet, Ewen’s expression was complex, unclear whether he was happy or sad.
"They said this place was full of opportunities, but on my first day here, I got tricked into working illegally in a factory," the plot took a sudden turn as Ewen started cursing, "those bastards didn’t treat us like humans at all, except for sleep, all we did was work."
"Huh?"
Cinderella struggled to follow the plot.
"Fortunately, I had been through stormy events, I wouldn’t give up easily. One day, I found an opportunity to escape, overturned the whale oil they’d collected, and set a big fire, burning it to the ground."
When Ewen ntioned this, his words were filled with pride, "Don’t believe , you can flip through newspaper records in the library, I rember the date was..."
"Over the days, I t many liars, with various types of deceit, so I saw through, others I got tricked into. I wasn’t kidding when I said I was almost sold to the Kagader Empire."
Cinderella didn’t know what expression to wear for the upcoming story. No wonder Ewen could write such interesting stories; they added up to his autobiographical experience.
"I later found a relatively legitimate job, accompanying a ship on a long voyage, but midway we encountered a storm, the whole ship sank into the sea. I thought this ti I was really done for, but when I opened my eyes, I was lying on an unfamiliar beach."
"What happened then?"
Cinderella asked eagerly, increasingly curious about Ewen’s wondrous adventures.
Ewen smiled slightly, "What happened next was rather familiar, survival, looking for a town, I had beco very skilled in this."
"Then..."
Ewen’s voice softened; behind the misty mories, another blurred figure erged. No matter how much Ewen tried to focus, he still couldn’t see through the mist, but he could see those srizing eyes beyond it.
"Then... then I t soone."
Ewen took a deep breath, with a solemn expression, as if recounting an ancient, long-sealed story.
"A woman with fire opal eyes."
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