>>124037
>>127387
whilst on path towards an outpost, Lucy breaks down at the thought of returning home
she tells how her captors had imprisoned and massacred Canington, and with no friends or family, she remains alone in the world
despite her wishing to be left to die, Halvard refuses to abandon her, instead asking her to find the will to continue, to think of whether or not the dead would wish to see her go this way, and in response, she reluctantly agrees to keep moving
continuing the path through the snow, Halvard introduces himself and his role as a ranger
he mentions being told to kill humans on sight and to deny the Grey Khanate of all potential resources
reading this, I thought of survivor's guilt and how people tend to blame themselves for what happened, often lowering their self-worth to the point where they begin wishing they weren't alive because they believe the other victims were more deserving of life, but of course, the inability to change the past often makes it difficult for people to move on, though Lucy being bounded in isolation would have left her with no real distractions from what happened, which would explain how she had become so numb
with no other contacts out in the world, I wonder about Lucy's future, presumably being turned into some form of soldier at the outpost since the alternative of her being treated like a princess would only make her feel like a burden
I'd think reintegration into wider society would probably not work out for her, for reasons similar to pulling a soldier out of a gruesome war and expecting them to act as if they had experienced nothing
I'm curious about Lucy's knowledge of the world, or of any skills she may have learned growing up, perhaps covering a weak spot in skill that other characters might not be so knowledgeable in
at least, I would expect someone living in a coastal village to have more real world experience than someone in a city
likewise with Halvard, I wonder about his abilities, presumably having been taught survivalist skills early on, if not by his military training
also a question as to who that lady was in the photograph, and whether or not she has anything to do with why Halvard became a soldier
I still wonder about the Grey Khanate's goals, as everything has a reason
one of those questions is then, who is funding them (or trading with them), and why?
for whom are they extracting "resources" for, and what else are they extracting?
are they only chasing money, or are there more reasons driving their actions? especially wondering due to their willingness to kill, which is seemingly counter-productive/uneconomical
mercenaries don't risk their lives for nothing, so there has to be a high reward in it for them
I've liked the story so far, having made me think of the character's situations and what it would be like to experience them or interact with someone else that did
it's the thoughts provoked by this work that make me appreciate reading it
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