I returned home and informed Grandpa Tariq about the upcoming celebration. He offered a small, knowing nod and readily agreed to come along. We sat down for dinner shortly after, a meal that carried a weight of silence neither of us was quite ready to break. It was possibly our last dinner together, and the realization hung heavy in the dim room. I noticed then that, despite the short time I had spent in Hajzenfels, we had become close enough to feel a genuine, lingering sadness about parting ways. We didn't chat while eating; the only sounds were the scraping of spoons and the crackle of the hearth. After the meal, I moved to help him clean up, but he waved me off with a tired but firm hand.

  “I can take care of it,” Grandpa said, his voice soft. “You should get going by now. The villagers must be waiting for you”.

  As I suspected, the village must have planned this event well in advance; it would have been impossible to inform everyone and organize a festival in just an hour. Since he was insistent, I had no choice but to follow his lead. I had learned by now that it was futile to try and convince an old man once he had set his mind on something.

  When I arrived at the center of the village, I found a large group of people already gathered around a growing bonfire. The air was filled with the smell of roasting meat and the sharp tang of local liquor. I was about to greet them, but a familiar figure noticed my arrival first and practically sprinted toward me.

  “Good evening, Han! Hihihi,” Fadeline giggled as she reached me, immediately taking my arm. “We are preparing the fire right now. Everything should be ready in a while”.

  “Good evening, Fadeline,” I replied, trying to maintain a modest tone. “You didn’t have to trouble yourselves just for me. Regardless, thank you all for this”.

  “Don’t be so modest,” she countered with a bright smile. “We don’t have many opportunities for a festival here. Everyone is thinking of this as a good chance to relieve some stress. I will do my best to enjoy myself too, but that doesn’t change the fact that you are the main reason for all of this, Han”.

  As she spoke, she squeezed my right arm tightly between her own, pulling me close enough that I could feel her warmth and the soft pressure of her breasts against my skin. I tried to act indifferent, but I was certain my face was already flushing a deep, unmistakable crimson. Fortunately, the villagers were preoccupied with the fire and the drinks, and no one seemed to pay any attention to my embarrassment.

  I looked at Fadeline’s eyes, which were shining with an intense excitement. I knew she didn't have many interests in this quiet village, but I wondered why an eighteen-year-old girl would feel such a desperate need to relieve stress. She must have had her own problems, or perhaps I was simply exaggerating her words in my mind. She might have just been referring to the general mood of the other villagers.

  “It seems about to start. Let’s go! You are the man of the event, after all,” she said, pulling me toward the heart of the festival.

  The night passed in a blur of celebration. We drank to our hearts' content, and for a few hours, the entire village seemed to truly enjoy themselves. Even Grandpa Tariq was smiling, deep in conversation with some of the other elders. Othrik and his hunting party were particularly noisy, grouped together and recounting the day's events with increasing exaggeration.

  They would often come to my side, narrating our last hunt as if it were an epic poem. They praised my speed and strength, describing the Black Howl as a literal demon and me as a peerless swordmaster who possessed perfect control over my blade. To them, I was a hero who had snatched them from certain death. They were noisy and repetitive, but there was a genuine warmth in their praise that made me feel welcome.

  As for the most attention-demanding person of the evening, it was undeniably Fadeline. She clung to me relentlessly, constantly offering me food and drinks while subtly pushing away any other girls who tried to approach. I knew I was leaving the next morning and that she should have been giving up, but her earnesty only seemed to grow the more she listened to the hunting party’s fantastic deeds. I started to worry if she was turning into some kind of fanatic.

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  The festival continued until the small hours of the night. Realizing I had to leave early in the morning, I decided it was time to take my leave. By then, the energy of the crowd had shifted. The hunting party had already passed out, having drunk like boars. Other villagers had either left or were huddled in small groups, chatting quietly over the last of their booze.

  I thanked those who noticed my movement, being careful not to disrupt the rest, and began the walk home. I hadn't drunk an excessive amount, but I still felt a slight, dizzying drunkenness that made the familiar path seem less stable than usual. When I reached the door of the hut and reached for the latch, I noticed a presence behind me.

  I looked back and saw her standing there—not too close, but not far either. She was looking at me with wide, expectant eyes.

  “...W-well, Han… I know you have to get up early, but can we talk a bit before you go to bed?” she asked, her voice stuttering with hesitation. Her speech became clearer and more determined as she began to voice what was on her mind.

  I had my suspicions about where this was going, but I couldn't bring myself to turn her down when she looked at me with such vulnerability. I decided to listen to what she had to say first.

  “Okay. Please, come in,” I said, opening the door.

  I led her to my room and offered her the only chair, which I had placed against the bed, while I sat down on the straw mattress. She didn't sit. She simply stood there, looking down and gripping the hem of her skirt so hard her knuckles were white. She looked like she was carrying something incredibly important. I didn't rush her; I just waited for her to find her voice.

  A few moments later, she turned toward me and began to undress. I was completely dumbfounded.

  What is she doing? Is she so drunk she doesn't know what she's doing? I wondered. I had expected a confession or a difficult goodbye, but this was far more absurd than anything I had imagined.

  “Hey, hey Fadeline! What do you think you’re doing?” I asked, standing up quickly. “You must be very drunk. Let me bring you some water”.

  “No!” she yelled, her voice sharp as if I had made a terrible mistake. Her eyes were filled with tears. Seeing her state, I assumed I was at fault, though I didn't know why.

  “I’m not drunk or anything,” she said, her face flushing as she realized her own contradiction. “W-well, actually, I am a little drunk, but that’s not why I’m doing this”.

  I gulped, my mouth suddenly dry. She was doing this on her own—she really wanted to do ‘that,’ didn’t she? Even with my memories gone, the gravity of the situation was unmistakable.

  “S-so, why are you doing this?” I asked, my voice hesitating. “If you’re doing this to change my mind about leaving, I—I’m sorry, but I have to go either way”.

  “Too bad. It would be so good if you stayed with me, but this is fine too,” she said, her eyes welling up again. “Let me at least do this much, please”.

  She looked so incredibly cute that it was nearly impossible to say no. I realized that even if I had been perfectly sober, it would have been difficult to resist her temptation. But my judgment was clouded by the alcohol. She didn't jump on me; she just stood close, tempting me with every deliberate move she made.

  She had always been a cute girl in my eyes, but now, "cute" wasn't enough to describe her. She had beautiful curves and striking, feminine features that caught the eye. I found myself gulping repeatedly, fighting the urge to drool.

  “Why don’t you want to do it with me? Is there a plausible reason?” she asked, looking like an abandoned puppy. The urge to hug and love her was overwhelming.

  “Y-you see… I leave tomorrow, and I don’t want to have a single regret in the corner of my mind,” I stuttered, trying to convey my thoughts. “You’re still a young, beautiful girl. You could have a stable life and children if you found someone here”.

  “I said it was okay, didn't I?” she persisted. “And I don’t want any of the men in the village. You already know that. Is there another reason? Do you think I’m not attractive?”

  “What!? Of course not!” I snapped, feeling a strange surge of irritation at her question. “You are a very attractive girl that any man would want to have”.

  “Then?” she asked, stepping right in front of my nose.

  She looked into my eyes like a succubus trying to enchant her prey. I was losing my grip on reality. She looked incredibly sexy, and at that moment, I couldn't bring myself to think about any consequences. I couldn't even formulate a response.

  I simply allowed her to do what she wanted. I embraced her and kissed her lips, and what followed was not much different from the raw, instinctual movements of two animals in heat. Between the passion and the alcohol, the rest of the night became a blur I could barely remember.

  [Edited]

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