Contentedness.
It was an emotion that I'd never felt before. Even now, such a thing eluded me.
However, one look at the interior of the town hall told me everything I needed to know about that emotion.
It seemed that the townspeople had indeed given up on driving those damned cultists out of the area, because there wasn't a single person here except the town chief.
Perhaps Krynera's protection was more of a curse than a blessing.
"Ah... Welcome, welcome!" The town chief hurriedly greeted us with an expression of surprise. He clearly wasn't expecting any visitors to actually show up.
I explained that Lucrezia and I were here to help with eliminating the cultists. As I did so, we quickly learned that it'd been over two weeks since the town chief had started organizing this attack.
It'd taken him a while to tail the cultists and find their base of operations, but he even had the battle scars to show for it. I really wished politicians back on Earth were this dedicated to their community.
Mad respect, old man!
"Not even a single volunteer in two weeks? That's insane, man. What about adventurers?"
"Ahaha... Adventurers don't really pass through a backwater town like this. You're the first two I've seen in a while!"
I scratched the back of my head and sighed. What I really wanted to do was get back on the road with Lucrezia, but I couldn't do that now that I'd learned about the capture of her companions.
Besides, I blurted out that stupid promise and it was already way too late for regrets.
"Alright, point us in the direction and we'll go take care of them for you."
The town chief balked at me.
Huh...? Was that too direct?
"Uh, I mean, we accept your request to remove these cultists from the town's surroundings."
"...I understand your meaning, ma'am—"
"Ryuuko."
"I understand your meaning, miss Ryuuko, but isn't that a little too reckless? Just the two of you against... Who knows how many cultists are hiding in there."
"It'll be fine. They can't fight for shit and I'll have 'em out of your hair in no time. Now c'mon and show me where they're hiding!"
In the end, it took around fifteen more minutes for me to finally convince the town chief to show us the location of the cultists' hideout, and only after I demonstrated the extent of my strength by snapping a heavy greatsword in half with my bare hands.
The cultists were located in a wooded glade just beneath a tall hill west of the town. It was a fairly secluded spot, and all things considered, a pretty smart choice for a hideout. Knowing them, they probably built an extensive underground base as well.
"Man, what a waste of time! He should've just trusted me in the first place!" I complained to Lucrezia as the two of us made our way to the forest.
She giggled and thanked me for my efforts.
In the face of her cuteness, I couldn't help but simmer down.
As close as the cultists' camp was, it would still take us at least a day's journey to get there. They had probably selected the location and distance so that they could be forewarned if a sizable force was marching toward them.
With just the two of us though, it was more of a boon than anything since we could take our time approaching under the cover of the forest.
"Tell me about your clan, Lucrezia."
"E-Eh!? What's with the sudden question, ahaha..."
"No particular reason. We've been traveling together for almost three days, but we barely know anything about each other. Figured I'd start us off since you've been so quiet."
"Oh... Sorry... I guess I'm still not used to talking with humans..." She paused. "That was a bit rude wasn't it? Sorry..."
I hastened to make a negative gesture.
"No, not at all."
In fact, it was rather understandable given her experience with humans. From the information that I learned using [Rulebook], captured Demons were often branded as slaves by the Kingdom of Ardene and then treated like tools to be discarded.
It really fucking pissed me off.
No matter where I went, humans were just endlessly despicable.
To make matters worse, it wasn't the commoners who were participating in this sort of bullshit. As always, it was the people who sat at the very top. The goddamn nobility.
Just like back on Earth.
Fuck these limp dick pricks.
"Well, the Zaltsel clan is mostly made up of Shurai like me. We have white hair, red eyes, and horns, though mine have yet to grow out yet. I guess Shurai are the first thing humans think of when they hear about Demons.
"We're one of the bigger clans in the east, though, so we've got pretty big cities just like the nations on this side of the continent! When we're not embroiled in the Reckoning, things are actually pretty peaceful at home."
"The Reckoning?" That was another term that wasn't covered in the rulebook.
According to Lucrezia, the Reckoning was the term that the barbaric tribes used to refer to the skirmishes that occurred between them and the nations across the Fissure. The western nations called them "expeditions", but they were more like raids than anything.
"They've really taken a toll on our harvest this year. My sister was actually trying to figure out a solution before we... got captured."
I remained silent for a few moments as I gathered the courage to speak.
"Don't worry. We'll find her."
Caring about someone else was really a luxury now that I had the time to think about it. I never even had the chance to consider doing so back in my previous life, but now that I'd met Lucrezia, it was something I had to start learning.
To tell the truth, I didn't know why I cared about Lucrezia. I mean, she certainly was beautiful and she seemed like a nice girl, but I had no actual reason to care about her.
I killed those cultists because they disgusted me, and I'm escorting Lucrezia now because she fed me. But... Me? Care about someone?
I barely even knew this girl, and here I was, spouting stupid ass lines that only idealistic protagonists in fiction would say.
Not only that, but I would probably be getting a lot stronger right now if I wasn't marching off to kill cultists just because there was a chance of saving her people.
There was only one solution, then.
I need to get to know her more, so I would have an excuse to care. That's... all there is.
For the rest of the trip until sunset, Lucrezia and I shared a bit more about ourselves. She was the oldest sibling amongst four children, which kept her rather busy at times. Her hobbies were alchemy, reading, and magecraft, which really cemented the fact that I was in a fantasy world.
I was glad for the fact that other people could use magic. At the very least, I wouldn't become more of a walking trope than I already was. I really despised series like "I'm Reborn But Only I Have a System!"
...Though, I guess I shouldn't be talking. I've got some sickass boons that most people in the world don't have.
I decided to set up camp with Lucrezia before I could agonize further about my gradual descent into the type of trope that I hated the most.
At least I didn't have a harem.
"Hey, Ryuuko?"
I turned around to face her in my sleeping bag. I was already tucked in, but she'd just entered the shelter after setting up an alarm spell around our campsite.
"About earlier... When you got upset for my sake... Thank you."
"I was upset?" I frowned, genuinely confused.
"When I told you about the raids, and when I said I hadn't fully eased up around humans yet... You... had quite the frightening expression. So, thank you."
And here I thought I was better at preventing my emotions from showing.
"It's nothing. Good night, Lucrezia. We've got one hell of a day waiting for us tomorrow."
"You're a good person, Ryuuko."
I peeked over my shoulder to look at her face, and the smile she wore was gentler than the pale moonlight.
I'm... not the kind of person you think I am, Lucrezia.