Hei stood proudly amidst the shattered wreckage of the cart, casually holding half of a splintered wooden board in his hand, looking remarkably pleased with himself.
"You see?" Hei smiled broadly, tossing the wood aside and dusting off his hands with a satisfied clap. "The blockage is cleared. The path of the road is open once more. You are welcome, citizen."
The merchant didn't say thank you. He just fell to his knees in the dirt, surrounded by the shattered remains of his livelihood, weeping loudly into his hands.
The villagers in the plaza didn't even yell. Yelling took precious calories and emotional energy they simply didn't have to spare. They just let out a unified groan of exhaustion. They were actually used to this.
These were the two village idiots. They weren't malicious or cruel, which somehow made it ten times worse, because you couldn't rightfully petition the Magistrate to banish them or execute them for trying to be helpful.
