Once they had walked far enough that their own cabin was in sight, Melissa leaned a little more heavily on Adrian's arm, her curiosity piqued. "What was that about, dear? What promise did you make to Elara?"

Adrian adjusted his grip to support her better. "It was nothing serious, Mom. I just told her that if she ever needed help with anything, like moving sacks of flour or stacking firewood, she could call on me. That's all."

Melissa hummed softly, a knowing look in her tired eyes. "That's my boy," she whispered, her voice full of emotion.

" For a moment there, I thought you'd finally found yourself a woman that caught your eye." Melissa giggled.

" M-Mom!" Adrian's voice heightened in disbelief, the blush on his face this time was even bigger than before.

" What? Did I say anything wrong, or is Elara not to your liking?" She tilted her head slightly, a coy grin on her face.

Adrian blinked at her reply, his mind couldn't help focusing on an image of miss Elara. She was still in her youth, basically a beauty in her own right with those stunning long legs of hers and her mature body that could easily be picked over that of most girls his age. Though she was a bit older than him, she still hadn't been married even while her personality and character were basically what he would say he was looking for in a woman.

" It's not that I think miss Elara isn't ideal but..." Adrian pursed his lips before shaking his head.

" I still have to take care of you..." He said with a firm look.

His mother chuckled and caressed his cheeks with both hands.

" And who says you can't take care of two women?" She said with a chuckle.

Adrian was silent as if pondering it over, seeing this, his mom didn't say anything else.

A few more steps later, They finally reached their home, and Adrian guided his mother inside, out of the biting wind.

He helped her out of her heavy outer coat and led her straight to her bed, tucking the worn blankets securely around her. "You should rest now." he said, his voice gentle but a bit firm.

"I might not be a doctor but I'm sure mister Miller would be happy with you getting plenty of sleep from now on."

"I will, I will," she murmured, her eyelids already growing heavy. He stood by her bedside, watching the slow, steady rise and fall of her chest until her breathing deepened into the rhythm of sleep.

Only then did he allow the mask of his calm to slip, his own weariness pressing in on him. But there was no time for rest.

It wasn't regarding what she had said earlier but because of something else entirely.

' I still need to find a stable way to make a living so I can take of mom better... For now all I can do I keep selling herbs.' He sighed.

' I hope Leo isn't just pulling our legs and can get us into that so called capital. If so, then with him around, I might be able to get myself something worth doing so I can earn more money for the both of us.... Maybe then I can start thinking of marriage.'

Though he knew his mother wasn't pressuring him, he knew she was simply looking after him. He was already 18, in this world where adult hood started at fifteen, one could say he had spent 3 years of his life without getting married.

Quietly, he slipped out of her room and picked up his large wicker basket from its spot by the door.

The familiar weight of it on his back was both a comfort and a burden. He stepped back out into the cold, pulling the door shut without a sound.

He walked for awhile to his reached the villages edge, where he saw a group of men standing there at attention like always.

It was Thomas and the rest of the village patrol, their faces ruddy from the wind, their hands tucked under their armpits for warmth. They stopped short when they saw Adrian with his basket.

"Adrian?" Thomas said, his eyebrows climbing high on his forehead. " What on earth?, lad, where are you off to with that? You just got back up today and yet you're still looking to go back out there?!"

The other men murmured in agreement, their expressions a mix of surprise and concern.

" Boy, you almost got killed a few days ago, and we've heard you came back last time because of the order you got from Mr Miller, I'm sure he should've given you enough money to last awhile so why not rest for now instead of rushing back in there." Said one of the men.

Thomas stepped closer, his voice dropping to a more fatherly tone. " Lad, he's right, look at you. You're still not back to your full health."

"You need to go back inside and get some proper sleep. The herbs can wait. No one will think less of you for taking another day to recover."

Adrian felt the genuine concern washing over him, and for a moment, the temptation to just go back inside, to collapse onto his own bed and let the world fade away, was incredibly powerful.

He could still remember how close he was to dying last time, the torture he had been forced to endure, and right now, he still felt a bit of fatigue that constantly plagued him, which those 3 days of sleep hadn't been able to take care of. But then he thought of his original self and the sacrifices he had made just so his mother could live, and the sound of his mother's cough from this morning which made him feel worried regarding whether her illness would act up again if he wasn't careful.

He straightened his

shoulders, forcing a confident, reassuring smile onto his face. "I'm fine, Sir. "

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