Page 28 of Lonely Orcish Girl

"Um… I think they've just never seen anyone with, you know, green skin," he pointed out cautiously, fearing Katuri might already feel uncomfortable due to people's reactions.

The orcish girl shrugged and replied lightly, "Kids will be kids, Reed. Right now, they're just shy or scared because I'm an entirely new sight to them, but they're also curious, so they'll warm up to me eventually."

She smiled at him, and they headed toward his house, first tying the horse to the fence. Reed felt relieved that Katuri didn't seem to feel unwelcome thus far, and he prayed that the rest of the villagers would accept her. But he suspected it wouldn't be that easy.

As they came closer to the building, a man emerged from behind it, carrying a bucket; it was Joseph. Reed realized he must have just finished feeding his chickens, which made him feel guilty.

At first, the old man seemed startled at the sight of them, but then his face lit up with genuine joy and relief.

"Reed! Oh! It's good to see you alive, my boy! I thought I'd never see you again!" He approached Reed and hugged him with surprising strength for someone over seventy years old. "What happened? Where have you been all this time?"

Joseph looked at Katuri, but to Reed's relief, he didn't even grimace in a way that would indicate any negative feelings. His wrinkled face was open and curious.

"It's a long story. Joseph, this is Katuri. She's the reason I'm still alive," Reed said, pointing to the orcess.

"Oh, please." Katuri snorted, waving her hand, and said to Joseph, "Reed is exaggerating. Nice to meet you, Joseph."

"And she's far too modest. She literally saved me after I fell into the river and then almost died of fever," Reed countered her words, quickly telling Joseph a brief version of what exactly had happened.

Joseph listened without interrupting, and when Reed had finished, he turned to Katuri.

"Thank you, Katuri, for saving that silly hothead. Without you, he'd have rotted in the mud. And welcome to our small village," Joseph said with a friendly smile, even bowing slightly to her.

Then the old man asked what they were up to, and Reed thought this was a good opportunity to reveal that they were together. He held Katuri's hand while he told his neighbor about them. Reed sensed that Katuri was touched by his behavior.

Joseph didn't seem surprised; he just laughed softly and patted Reed on the shoulder. Then Reed thanked him for taking care of his farm, and he tried to suggest some ways to repay the favor, but Joseph wouldn't listen at all. He just said he was glad that Reed was well and safe, wished them all the best, and then headed to his house.

They walked around Reed's house, and he wanted to show Katuri everything that surrounded the farmyard, but she seemed too distracted, so instead, they went inside. Katuri looked very stressed.

He gently touched her shoulder and said, "I know this is probably a stupid question, but how are you feeling?"

Katuri smiled absently and shrugged her shoulders. "It's just a big change for me, Reed."

"That's because of the people, right? But so far, it hasn't been that bad. At least Joseph reacted positively."

She chuckled, albeit humorlessly. "Yes, he has. But you're like a grandson to him, am I right? I bet he'd react well, too, if you brought a female troll along."

"Yeah, you're probably right. Joseph is a cousin of my late grandfather. We were always close, since he doesn’t have his own family," Reed replied, sighing. It was a stressful situationfor him, let alone for her. He tried to think positively, but it was hard.

"But don't worry, Reed. I'll adapt. I'm not that fragile, you know. I was brought up among the orcs, and it has made me tough enough." She smirked, stepped to the window, and looked out pensively. "So at least I want to give it a try. For us. And I'm aware that some people in the village might have problems with letting an orcish woman stay with them. I can't say their concerns aren't justified. I know how orcs are perceived. But perhaps in time, I'll be able to gain their trust. As long as they don't come with torches and pitchforks, I'll be fine, Reed."

"Please, remember, Katuri, if they're unfriendly to you, we'll leave Stagmoor. To me, you're the most important," he said firmly, surprised by the strength of his own statement.

Katuri turned to him with a warm smile for the first time since they had left her hut. But when she peeked out the window again, her smile vanished immediately.

"Well, it seems we're going to find out sooner than we expected. Look."

Reed stepped closer to her and peeked out the window. He froze when he realized what she meant.

A large group of people, about two dozen or maybe more, was approaching his farm. He cursed under his breath, recognizing the council elders and a few others. In the lead walked Zachary, Petyr's father and the head of the village. His son was beside him.

Zachary was easy to recognize from afar because he was the only fat man in the village, having never worked in the fields. He was rich enough to pay other men to work for him. The head of the council became wealthy by sheer luck when, as a young man, he found a large nugget of gold on his land. But he was smart and multiplied the value of his find.

Reed always had mixed feelings about Zachary but couldn't put his finger on what exactly bothered him about the man. In any case, Zachary wasn't known for being overly biased or corrupt as a councilman, so at least that was a good thing. Reed even believed that Zachary's presence could be beneficial since he was respected and had enough charisma to influence the crowd.

Fortunately, the people weren’t carrying torches or improvised weapons, but Reed could still feel his hands sweating with nervousness. Nevertheless, he clenched his fists, set his jaw, and mentally prepared for a confrontation. He had to be strong today. He had promised Katuri he’d fight for her, and he was ready to do that.

Reed turned to the orcess and noticed her tense expression. She was trying not to show her emotions, but he could tell that she was concerned, which wasn't surprising at all.