When Arvil and I exited the bakery carrying a single satchel on both of our arms and march forward, already from the road ahead of us, men and women had exited from the old market street to proceed with the day's labour such as fishing, farming, hunting, pelting, mining, butchering, sculpting, smiting, and so on and so forth.

  Because we were this close to the snow and sea, with having jungle behind our backs, the oportunities did not end their, we had even more options and more choices to pick from in all three seasons in our valley. So if they so desired, these men and women can entirely occupy themselves with hard labour, earning more money and more respect amongst their fellow peers.

  Such was the greatest advantage of being in this valley, and having the library within our valley only escalated this advantage even more, and I was not the only one who felt like this, one look at the men and woman who had passed all of us could cross validate the same.

  As for the man that walked beside me, even after we covered more than half the street, my companion chooses to remain silent, but still with each passing instant, his lips were twisting at the corners, as if his words were just about be spilled, yet he did not proceed with that, instead, with sweat precipitating across the back of the man, the man continued to walk forward, absorbing the whirlwind of emotions that he experienced with the Daran family. It was understandable of course, as all three of them were so energetic and so enthusiastic that whenever we are in their presence and vicinity, we forget the troubles of the world.

  "Ask me, Arvil?"

  After stating that, my body turned right, closely followed by turning another immediate right, and seeing still, the man muting himself, I did not push further. As after surviving so many conflicts and experiencing so many failures in life one of the few things I learnt is that when a man wishes to talk, give him space and patience for him to do so, he himself will take the first step.

  So, my gaze shifted from the man beside him, and began to bypass the eagles and crows who began to flock and nestled itself on the rooftops and grills more and more, to the road with cement and stone before me. And as this road began to widen, and extend, and as we marched and strode forward, with a smile etched from one corner of the mouth to another, three kids rushed at us, chased and trailed by a woman with a stick in her hand. After Witnessing this, both of us stopped where we were, and watched as these three children played with the woman, running circles around her, almost toying and playing, like a mouse that plays and toys with the housecat, these children played. And as this woman, continued to chase those children, with half frustration and half delight spread through her features, the man beside me, unable to handle this silence anymore further, finally choose to disturb the silence.

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  "All of this is too much."

  While the children and their mother, who chased them behind us, continued their dance behind our back, and as another eagle flew and landed itself on the rooftops near the house before me. Ignoring the gaze of the eagle, my legs began to advance forward, giving and granting all the time the man needs to enumerate.

  "In my corner of the Empire or across most of the Empire, there is no warmth. There is no compassion. There is no joy. What left is nothing more than pain, misery, and death, and we predicted the same when my brother and I came here. So I do not know which of us was surprised the most, and i suspect we are not the only ones. As this is a strange notion, peace, and the laughter. Because from where we came, everyone is out looking for only themselves and their blood. So I do not know what holds for our future, but I am glad that I came here. And I am glad that I met you and everyone here. And I pray to all the lords and ladies that hope does not leave this cold valley, because, it is in scarcity, and it cannot be replenished."

  Proceeding that honest confession, after the satchel in my left hand shifted towards my right. My arm rising, planting above his shoulder blades, dragging the man towards me, till the man's neck twisted as he faced me, my voice responded.

  "It is mutual. When we requested a junior assitanct from the Empire, we did not who they would send, and how corrupt that individual would be. But when we saw you, and the work and the hours you put in, we understood that we were lucky that they sent a guy like you to us."

  Stating that, retracting my arm from his shoulder, plucking both of his satchels from his arms, as both of us stopped our advance, instead of responding to me, the man beside me whose shoulder slumped, exhaled a deep breath, and walked away from me, as if the pain and burden that he carried on his shoulders would weigh more than a hundred tons. And with each step he advanced forward, he did so as if the essence and acquiescence of life itself were drained out of him, and seeing his slumped back and lowered neck, barely had he walked two paces away from me, when my voice responded.

  "You were never an outsider, Arvil."

  Istead of lifting his shoulder, turning, and speaking to me, my words spoken behind him had the opposite effect, because his legs and his arms began to twitch and vibrate, neck and head bent forward, as if my words had stabbed him and punctured through his heart. After seeing such strange reaction, exhaling a breath of my own, unable to assisst the man anymore, helplessly watched till his shadow left the street.