Chapter 98 (1/2)

The Horror of Being Identified

The three of us ate the breakfast that Daniela had prepared without leaving any leftovers. Then we destroyed the bathtub and took down the tent. Marie Elle insisted that we put our belongings in the wagon, and so I readily accepted the offer and put the hollow bag in with the other luggage.

“What are we going to do with the horses?”

“Horses are in demand wherever one goes, so we can sell them at Replant. But I will pull them until we get there.”

Daniela gathered the reins and gently pulled, and the horses followed her obediently. Maybe horses liked to be pulled around by beautiful women as well. I understood that completely. Daniela could ride me any time.

The horse that pulled Marie Elle’s wagon was also from the bandit group. Their own horse had been killed to prevent them from escaping. These men were clearly used to ambushing travelers. I hadn’t been able to save her father or her horse.

“Well, let’s go then!”

Marie Elle sat in the driver’s set and gave the command. Impressive for how young she was. Did people start working at her age in this world?

“I just watched father a lot…”

“I see…you’re very good.”

“Ehehe.”

I sat next to Marie Elle and patted her on the head as she looked up. She smiled happily.

I was the only one who wasn’t doing anything… They were the right people for the right job, I guess. And there was no job right for me. I felt quite bad about that.

It felt wrong to just sit there, and so I decided to keep watch of the area. Of course, on a horse.

“Woah…li-like this?”

“Yes, that’s it.”

Daniela praised me as I held the reins and directed the horse. Getting too confident here would likely result in the horse throwing me off and running away, so I remained cautious. I was quite nervous, as this would be my first time riding a horse, but it felt really great. You could see much farther into the distance, thanks to the height, and it also helped with the precision of Presence Detection. But if I did have to make a complaint, it would be that it made your ass hurt.

We were able to reach Replant without getting attacked by monsters along the way. The front of the town was protected by a high wall. There were bandits nearby, after all. And blood apes lived in the forest not far away, so a strong wall must have had to be built here. The wall itself was quite battered. There were marks left that suggested it had been attacked many times.

And this wall had a grandly arched gate as well. It had a proper portcullis, unlike the places we had seen up until now. The ones that moved up and down in medieval castles. That alone made this place seem more like a fortress than a town. Would the people here be the barbaric type? I hoped it was at least safe…

“Hah…how long will it take to get inside…”

“This is quite the line…”

We had arrived safely, but we had yet to actually enter the town. This was because there was a giant line of people waiting to get inside. Where did all of these people come from… They must have been camping nearby last night. It was a good thing we hadn’t come any closer. It would have been very loud with all of the drunkards. And I wasn’t in the right state of mind for that… It was thanks to Daniela and Marie Elle that I could think and talk like normal now. And getting sufficient sleep at last.

To be honest, it did feel weird to return to such normality only a day after killing people. Perhaps it showed that I was becoming a part of this world. Values, morals. The ways of thinking. I could sense that those things had changed in the ‘Part-time worker, Asagi Kamiyashiro’ and I was now ‘Adventurer(Silvergreen) Asagi.’

However, I didn’t intend on changing everything. I would adapt when it was necessary, but I wouldn’t change the foundation. The night shift part-timer was an important part of who I was. I had gotten through plenty of difficult situations with that business smile. I had horrible memories of drunk customers, just like I had horrible memories of those bandits. And they all helped in shaping me into who I am today.

And I’m sure that business-like smile would continue to be on my face as I swing my sword. Wait, that makes me sound like a psychopath.

Hmmm…still, things were really rowdy around here. Adventurers really weren’t the most relaxed creatures.

“Hey! You!”

Oh? It was a woman’s voice. A woman Adventurer…how rare. Well, Daniela was one. But I hadn’t seen many besides her. Curious. And so I turned my head towards that voice and our eyes met. …And then I realized how awkward it was, and so I averted my gaze.

“Hey! You, I mean you! Are you stupid!?”

The insults poured as soon as I looked away. Damn…I would be scared if that was directed at me. But no one would do that just because you met their eyes. But who then? Who was this unfortunate person she was angry with?

I looked around to see, only to find that everyone was looking at me. What?

“Quit looking around!”

“Woah.”

The sudden shouting was much closer now. I turned around frantically, just as the woman grabbed me by the collar.

Apparently, the unlucky guy who had attracted her ire was me.

“Wh-what’s this…that…hurts…could you stop that…”

“What is this! You are covered in blood! It reeks!”

“I see your point, but I can’t…”

This is what happens when you hunt bandits. We didn’t have time to do any laundry. We would just have to do it once we found an inn. It’s not like I enjoyed having blood stains on me…

“What!? Just clean it with void magic!”

“Void magic?”

What’s that?

“You do not know what void magic is? Magic with no properties?”