The day after safely giving birth to twins following ten months of pregnancy, Tokai Natural was politely asked by the Tokai family to leave.
It was truly fortunate she was an Uma, whose physical constitution was slightly stronger than that of humans.
Otherwise, given Tokai Natural's frailty, getting kicked out the very next day after childbirth, her corpse probably would have been half cold by now.
Of course, just as before, for Tokai Natural, the problems she faced never ended—one after another, endlessly.
Glancing at the child swaddled in her arms, Tokai Natural's expression wasn't particularly good.
She'd left the family empty-handed, meaning aside from the baby she held, she had nothing but the clothes she wore.
Though according to the Tokai family, Tokai Natural technically owed them a debt for the ten months of "care" provided after Symboli Rudolf saw through her disguise—but due to their "kindheartedness," they generously waived it.
Yet to Tokai Natural, none of this mattered.
What really mattered right now was…
"Firstly, I've been expelled from the Tokai family. Secondly, I have no money on me. Thirdly, though I can technically work…"
Staring at the tightly shut wooden door, Tokai Natural turned around, facing the road.
Because of Symboli Rudolf's presence, the Tokai family—worried about possible repercussions—definitely wouldn't let Tokai Natural find work nearby, at least not here.
Thus, for Tokai Natural, her only way to Tokyo was doing odd jobs.
But surviving solely on odd jobs meant, while she could perhaps feed her daughter, her own body…
Thinking of this, Tokai Natural sighed softly.
White mist escaped her lips, and she suddenly realized something she hadn't noticed inside the climate-controlled rooms of the Tokai home:
Right now... it's winter.
Realizing this, Tokai Natural instinctively hugged the child a little tighter, then hurriedly left the Tokai family's front gates.
Her body wasn't in good shape, so she had to find shelter before the snow started falling heavily.
The Tokai family estate—or rather, the secluded place where Tokai Natural had been hidden to ensure Symboli Rudolf wouldn't find out—was far from the city.
Precisely because of this, Tokai Natural now faced a fresh dilemma:
How could she survive the gradually dropping temperature?
The secluded medical facility, located deep in the wilderness, had only one highway and one mountain path leading outward. Being just a private medical compound, there was no public transportation available.
Hence, Tokai Natural currently walked alone along the side of an empty highway, unable to find even the smallest piece of shelter.
Snowflakes had already started drifting slowly from the sky.
At this rate, maybe…
Lowering her head, Tokai Natural stared at her feet.
If only I could run right now.
But there was no "if" in this world.
Her sickly body had prevented her from ever racing on a track—let alone now, with the added debuff of having just given birth.
Thus, even if she wanted to hurry down the mountain, it was impossible.
But luckily, she still had just a tiny bit of good fortune.
The sky continued to scatter only a few snowflakes here and there.
Under this gentle snowfall, Tokai Natural finally reached the boundary of the Tokai family's private lands.
After leaving their territory, she soon arrived at a small town.
To facilitate supply, while Uma families usually built their medical recovery bases in remote suburbs, they never set them too far from human settlements. After all, supplying those facilities was expensive.
Thus, Tokai Natural could just barely find her next step forward.
Given the Tokai family's influence, this small town—firmly within their sphere—certainly wouldn't accept her for long. Thus, her only realistic option now was Tokyo.
Although the Tokai family held some power, it wasn't yet overwhelming at this point.
Currently, the Tokai family hadn't produced any exceptionally strong Umas, so their influence in Tokyo remained limited.
Aside from Tokyo, she could have chosen other cities—but those brought problems like distance and expenses.
The Tokai family, after all, belonged to the core Uma aristocracy. Although their recent achievements had been lackluster, they were undeniably located within the Greater Tokyo area.
Thus, choosing Tokyo as her destination wasn't unreasonable. Yet Tokai Natural had two main reasons for this decision:
Firstly, it would be easier to earn money there.
Secondly, the Tokai family's reach wasn't yet powerful enough to completely prevent her from finding work in Tokyo.
She had to hurry and earn enough money in Tokyo before her daughter's talent awakened—then move somewhere else.
Even though Tokyo had a higher cost of living, its opportunities to earn money far surpassed other cities, so Tokyo was her only choice.
As for after that?
Once Tokai Teio's talent began to show, Tokai Natural probably wouldn't even need to think about working anymore.
Because she knew clearly that at that point, the Tokai family's influence in the central region would sharply increase.
And if the Tokai family still remembered her by then, even if she did find a job, she probably…
So she had to hurry to Tokyo quickly.
Having made this decision, Tokai Natural glanced around, trying to find any structure or sign that would indicate the current time.
She needed to know what time it was, so she could decide if tonight she would find a few cardboard boxes to barely cling to survival, or maybe find a slightly cleaner dumpster to curl up in.
Or perhaps she'd return temporarily to the Tokai family's land and cobble together a makeshift shelter, just to survive one more night.
As for finding a proper place to sleep—
She had no money.
Never mind whether this small town even had conveniences like internet cafés—even if it did, such a luxury was completely beyond Tokai Natural's reach.
It was the same old story—lack of money could defeat even the strongest hero. It was far too common in this world.
But Tokai Natural wouldn't complain about the situation. Nor did she have time for it.
Burdened by her child and her own fragile health, she had to make use of every last resource available to her, to determine her future—and most importantly...
The future of the child in her arms.
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T/N: this one is very different heheh i l ike lit