The village didn't feel alive.
It just… existed.
The huts were uneven, patched together with scraps of wood and cloth. Some leaned slightly, like they could collapse if the wind pushed a little harder. Thin trails of smoke rose from a few weak fires, but even those felt tired.
People moved slowly.
Quietly.
No one laughed.
No one even looked curious.
They hadn't fully stepped in when someone noticed them.
A girl stood near a broken fence.
She was small—smaller than Mia—and her clothes hung loosely on her frame, worn and slightly torn. Her hair was short and uneven, like it had been cut without much care.
But her eyes—
They were sharp.
Watching.
Careful.
"Who are you?" she asked.
Tejas glanced at the others before answering. "We're… kind of lost."
"Kind of?" Kiara muttered under her breath.
The girl ignored that. She looked at them again, slower this time.
"You're not from around here."
It wasn't a question.
Her gaze shifted—
And stopped on Mia.
"What's that?" she asked.
Mia blinked. "What?"
The girl pointed lightly. "On your face."
Mia touched her glasses. "These?"
The girl stepped closer, curious but not scared.
"You can see better with those?"
"…Yeah."
The girl nodded once, like she accepted that.
"Can I try—"
"No," Mia said quickly.
The girl paused.
Then shrugged. "Okay."
Kiara crossed her arms. "You're just going to question us and then… what? Let us stand here?"
The girl turned and started walking.
"Come on."
Tejas blinked. "That's it?"
"If you weren't already exhausted, you wouldn't be here," she said without looking back.
Kiara opened her mouth—
Then closed it.
"…Fair enough."
They followed her through the village.
Up close, it felt worse.
A child sat outside one of the huts, staring at them silently.
No smile.
Just watching.
An older man nearby quickly looked away when Tejas met his eyes.
"…This place…" Mia whispered.
Diya gave her a small look. "…Yeah."
Anish wasn't really listening.
His eyes kept moving.
Taking everything in.
The ground.
The layout.
The fields—
He slowed slightly.
Something felt wrong.
Dry patches stretched across one side of the land, the soil cracked and rough.
But just a little further—
another field was soaked.
Too much.
The water pooled unevenly, turning parts of it into mud.
"…Wait," he muttered.
He crouched, running his fingers through the dry soil.
Then stood, looking toward the other side again.
"…That's weird."
Tejas glanced back. "What is?"
"They have water," Anish said quietly.
A pause.
"They're just not using it right."
Tejas frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"
Anish shook his head. "…I'm not sure yet."
But his eyes didn't leave the fields.
They stopped in front of the largest house in the village.
Even that looked fragile.
"Wait here," the girl said, stepping inside.
Kiara leaned slightly toward Mia. "…She didn't even ask our names."
Mia whispered back, "…I don't think names matter here."
That shut her up.
A moment later, a man stepped out.
He looked tired.
Not just physically—
but like something had been weighing on him for a long time.
His eyes moved over them carefully.
"You're not from here," he said.
Tejas nodded. "Yeah. We got lost."
The man didn't respond immediately.
"We're not asking for much," Tejas added. "Just a place to stay."
The man's expression didn't change.
"We barely have enough for ourselves."
Silence.
Anish stepped forward slightly.
"I can help your fields."
That made the man pause.
"You?" he asked.
Anish nodded. "You have water. You're just not distributing it properly."
Kiara raised an eyebrow. "…Since when did you become a farmer?"
Anish ignored her.
"We've tried fixing it before," the man said. "Nothing changes."
"I'm not saying I can fix everything," Anish replied. "But I can make it better."
The man studied him for a long moment.
"…A week," he said finally.
Tejas blinked. "What?"
"You stay for a week," he repeated. "If nothing changes, you leave."
Tejas nodded slowly. "…That's fair."
The man gave a short nod. "Laiven. I'm the chief here."
The girl beside him added, "Lumi."
Kiara finally smirked slightly. "Took you long enough to introduce yourself."
Lumi didn't react.
The food they were given was small.
Too small.
Mia held her portion carefully, like she didn't want to finish it too quickly.
Kiara, on the other hand, was done in seconds.
"…That's it?" she muttered.
No one answered.
Because that was all there was.
That night, they sat outside.
The village was quieter than the forest had been.
Lumi sat a little distance away, hugging her knees.
For a while, no one spoke.
Mia looked down at what little food she had left.
"…Is it always like this?" she asked quietly.
Lumi didn't look at her at first.
"…Yeah," she said.
A pause.
"…Some days are worse."
Mia hesitated.
"…But why?"
That made Lumi go still.
"…Why does it have to be like this?"
Silence stretched between them.
Lumi exhaled slowly.
"…We get taxed," she said.
Mia frowned. "…Taxed?"
"…Every season," Lumi continued. "They come and take what we have."
A small pause.
"…Even when we barely have enough to survive."
No one spoke.
Kiara's expression tightened. "…That's messed up."
Tejas looked away, jaw set.
Diya's hands curled slightly in her lap.
Mia looked at Lumi again.
"…Then why don't you just refuse?
Lumi gave a faint, tired smile.
"…And do what after that?"
A pause.
"…We don't have power."
Her voice stayed calm.
Too calm.
"…If we only had the protection of a god…"
Silence.
Tejas frowned slightly. "…A god?"
Kiara blinked. "…Wait—you mean like… an actual god?"
Lumi looked at them, confused now.
"…Of course," she said.
That only made it worse.
Mia glanced at Diya. "…She's serious."
Diya nodded slowly, uncertainty creeping into her expression.
"…What kind of god?"
Lumi tilted her head slightly.
"…You don't know?"
A pause.
"No…" Tejas admitted.
Lumi looked at all of them—really looked this time.
Something in her expression shifted.
"…Then where are you people from?"
No one answered immediately.
The question lingered longer than it should have.
After a moment—
Tejas looked up at the sky.
"…Somewhere far from here," he said.
A small pause.
"…I think."
Silence followed.
Then—
Mia spoke.
Softly.
"…We can't go back, though."
No one reacted immediately.
Because everyone understood what she meant.
Kiara looked away.
Tejas didn't say anything.
Diya's hands tightened slightly around her sleeves.
Even Anish—
stayed quiet.
Somewhere in the distance—
a faint wind passed through the fields.
And for a moment—
it felt like the village was holding its breath.
End of Chapter 7