For the rest of the walk to Myrefall, Crow remained quiet. His eyes wandered over the forest around them as he reminisced about his life in the outer villages. Various memories came back to him—mostly pleasant, since one always seemed to grow fondest of a place right before he left it—and he smiled faintly, finding them especially bittersweet as they headed to the castle. He found himself feeling glad once again that his father had been willing to let him come back one more time before his training would begin.

When they eventually reached Myrefall, Crow shifted to walk a little closer to Penelope. His eyes swept over the dilapidated old buildings and fields full of farmers, and he felt a pang of nostalgia. Of all the villages in the northern part of Brerra, this one held the most significance to him. It was the place where he’d been born as well as where he’d lived nearly half of his life. Though most of the people he’d known during his childhood were dead by now—nearly all of them had caught and succumbed to the same illness as his mother—he still caught occasional glimpses of familiar faces as they walked. He wondered how many of them recognized him anymore.

At the knight’s question, he turned toward her with a shrug. “I’m not really sure how to answer that,” he admitted honestly. “But I think I’m faring alright.” He glanced off to his right, where a group of farmers were reclining in the shade to escape the afternoon sun. Nudging Penelope’s side, he gestured in their direction. “See that boy over there—the one with the light hair? His name is Dwight. Back when my mother passed, his parents were some of the people who helped me out.”

He turned back to her with a smile as he recalled the family’s generosity. “Since it wasn’t safe for me to stay in my mother’s home alone, they took me in on occasion and gave me food and shelter. A lot of the families here did, actually… I was passed around quite a bit.” He chuckled at the memory. “Since so many people die young here, it isn’t uncommon for children to be orphaned. I think the villagers see it as a communal job to care for any that wind up on their doorsteps. They certainly never turned me away, even though many of them knew I was a thief. They’re honestly the reason I survived past my adolescence.”