"Here's the money from selling all the items. You're lucky there were people who needed them. But don't make this mistake again, okay, Noah?"
"Haa... Yeah, I'm really lucky."
"Th-thank you! Hermila, Aileen… thank you both so much!"
Since I'm completely lacking in social skills, Aileen had taken the lead in selling the supplies.
Hermila had even joined in to help after hearing about my situation.
Thanks to them, I sold everything except the essentials!
I didn't get back the full price, but it's still a relief!
"Now that we've got the horses, let's really get going, Noah."
"Y-yes...!"
Oh right. We managed to buy horses at an incredibly cheap price, too.
That was all thanks to Hermila!
She's the best!
"W-Well then..."
I put the now much heavier coin pouch into my jacket and bowed deeply to Hermila.
"Make sure to come back to Alrba Village after your journey, alright?"
I will. I'll be back, Hermila. Should I bring a souvenir?
"Y-yeah...! Sniff… I'll... h-hic... I'll be back…"
Oh great.
I'm not sad at all, really. But this body, ugh, it's crying for some reason. It's not me.
"I'll see you when you return, Noah. I'll be waiting."
"Sn-sniff... Okay… hic... see you..."
My throat was tight, making it hard to speak...
"Hey, Noah? We're not going off to die, you know? Can you hurry up?"
Aileen was already six steps ahead, nagging at me.
Come on, really?!
I'm just saying goodbye to my lifesaver, Hermila, here!
"Pfft…! Ahem! That's right, Noah. It's not like we're parting forever. Cheer up!"
As always, Hermila patted my head gently, reassuring me.
"Yeah… alright…"
I gave one last bow before turning around, trying to play it cool.
"L-Let's go, Aileen."
"Haa… yes, let's."
Aileen glanced back at me, shook her head slightly, and headed out of the guild.
I followed behind, listening to the familiar but soon-to-be-distant noisy atmosphere of the guild one last time.
I may not have had any friends here, but Alrba Village had become dear to me.
It was where I first woke up in this female body, so in a way, it's my hometown now.
I'll definitely come back.
"Noah. Why are you stopping? Come on, it'll get dark soon."
Oh come on.
"Y-Yes…!"
I cursed Aileen under my breath for not understanding the sentiment, then hurried after her.
* * * *
Clip-clop, clip-clop. Our horses stopped as the sun began to set.
"It's getting dark, so we should set up camp here."
"We're sleeping here for the night…?"
I scanned the area with my senses.
Trees. Trees. And more trees. We were deep in a forest.
We'd passed by a snake and an enormous dragonfly on the way here… and we're going to sleep here?!
This wasn't the romantic adventure I imagined…
"Yes. We're a little behind schedule because someone made a minor mistake. We were supposed to camp outside the forest, but here we are."
"S-Sorry…"
"Noah? What did I say I'd do if you apologized again?"
"G-Gah! I-m-my bad!"
Aileen sighed heavily, her breath brushing past my ear. It tickled.
"Sigh... Do you really think saying 'sorry' and 'my bad' are different? Seriously?"
"T-Then what should I say…?"
"Are you talking back to me?"
"Ugh… ah…!"
What do you want from me?!
You just said I made a mistake, and yeah, I did! But people make mistakes!
You didn't tell me we'd be riding horses! Sure, you didn't say we wouldn't, but still…!
"Pfft… I'm just teasing you. Just say 'thank you.' Like, 'thanks for selling the supplies' or 'thanks for understanding.' That kind of thing, you know?"
Aileen laughed lightly and spoke in a soft tone.
I can never tell what she's thinking… she's so unpredictable.
"Well, thank you..."
I bowed my head to express my gratitude.
Aileen was behind me, but I didn't turn around to bow. It's just… her gigantic chest would have been right in my face, and that would've been awkward.
"Aww, good job. Now, get down."
Her praise sounded completely soulless. Why even bother praising me…?
Pouting, I tossed my greatsword down and jumped off the horse.
With a soft thud, my feet sank into the grass.
Thud-thud.
It's strangely satisfying to step on things when I can't see them. Hehe.
Thud-thud-thud.
Thump.
The sound changed slightly, so I guess Aileen got off her horse.
I crouched down and started feeling around for my greatsword.
It should be around here... huh.
Where'd it go?
Rustle, rustle.
Where is it...?
"Here."
As I continued fumbling around, Aileen slid the greatsword over to me.
"T-Thank you…"
I gripped the hilt tightly and scanned the area.
The grass here was clearly flattened, so I was in the right spot... What's going on?
And why is Aileen crouched down next to me, watching?
"W-What…?"
"Nothing. You're just cute. Shall we start preparing dinner?"
Her answer was odd. I doubt that's the real reason.
"...Okay."
I muttered my response as I fastened the sword to my waist.
"Since it's our first night, let's eat something nice. We should use up the food with shorter expiration dates first."
"Sounds good… What are we having?"
Aileen rummaged through the food bags attached to the horse and pulled out a wrapped piece of meat.
"How about barbecue? Sound good?"
"B-Barbecue…!"
I nodded vigorously.
Wait a minute… is it safe to do that in the middle of a forest?
My eager nodding slowed down.
It doesn't seem like a good idea...
Is this a test?
If I say yes, she might call me an idiot and make fun of me for the rest of the mission…!
As much as I want the barbecue, I'd better pass.
"N-No… Let's just have bread."
"Why?"
Huh, she's asking that like it's not obvious. She's definitely testing me.
This woman is terrifying…!
"B-because if the smell attracts wild animals or bandits…"
"Ah, don't worry about that."
With a slight smirk, a warm energy began to radiate from Aileen's body.
"Huh...? W-What is this...?"
Some kind of strange energy spread out in a circle around us.
It's not magic. And it doesn't seem like an artifact…?
"I've got a few tricks up my sleeve. But can you actually see this?"
I nodded, watching the shimmering energy around us.
It felt oddly familiar.
"What is this? Please, tell me...!"
This is driving me crazy.
I've definitely seen this somewhere, but I can't remember for the life of me.
It's like an itch I can't quite reach! Just tell me!
"You'll understand when you grow up. Right now, kids like you don't need to know. Now sit down. You've got to eat well and sleep early if you want to grow up."
"K-Kids…?!"
Wha—Hey!
I'm an adult!
I'm 25 years old!
"...I'm not a kid. I'm an adult."
I glared at Aileen, speaking as firmly and confidently as I could.
"Noah, an adult? Pfft… you're serious, huh?"
I couldn't see her expression, but I could feel how mocking her tone was.
Her voice, too.
Aileen, are you really going to treat me like this?! Huh?!
I'm obviously older than you…!
"I-I'm serious…!"
"Sure, sure. I believe you. Now, come here and sit. We're fine as long as the smell doesn't get out."
"B-But what is this...?"
"You're an adult, right? Then you already know, don't you?"
Ugh! Ughhh!
She's so annoying!
"Ugh…"
"Keep your mouth shut."
"...I didn't say anything."
"Hmm? Want the meat or not?"
I zipped my lips.
"Good."
"'Good'? What does that even mean?"
I grumbled softly, making sure Aileen couldn't hear.
"Talking back?"
"S-Sorry…"
Ignoring my apology, Aileen continued rummaging through the bags. A moment later, she pulled out a firestarter and asked,
"Do you know how to start a fire?"
"...No."
For some reason, I just can't get it to light.
"What about setting up a tent?"
"I-I don't know..."
It always falls apart.
"So, what do you know?"
"Hunting…!"
I'm really good at hunting!
"Wow, you know how to hunt? As expected of a grown-up."
"Of course…!"
"Well, keep watching. Adults need to know how to make a fire, too."
"S-Stop…"
"Why? You're not a kid, right? So are you an adult or a child? Pick one."
"I'm an adult..."
"Alright, adult Noah. Go gather some dry grass. You can do that, right?"
Without replying, I stood up and headed off to collect some grass.
I deliberately stomped my feet loudly.
Aileen, your teasing is too much.
Stomp stomp stomp—
* * * *
"Hey, Heinzel. Did you hear the news?"
"I did…"
"That so..."
An unusual silence hung over the usually boisterous adventurer's guild.
"They're gone."
"Yeah..."
"Damn… I never even got to say goodbye…"
"She never even glanced at me."
"Sheesh, look at your face, Heinzel. With that shaved head of yours, even a grown man would cry if they saw you."
"Hey, Luchi. You're no looker yourself. What's with your eyes? Did you trade them for booze? You should keep them closed sometimes. When I see you at night, I get chills."
"Is it that bad…? Haha, so that's why."
"…Maybe I should've grown out my hair. Maybe dyed it a bit…"
Heinzel, Luchi, and a few other rugged adventurers filled the guild with their sighs.
Some had bought the girl's supplies just to help her out.
Some had sold her their finest horses at a loss.
Some couldn't stop thinking about her tearful goodbye.
And most of them couldn't forget the little girl who had become the guild's mascot.
"She was cute..."
Luchi thought about his younger sister, who had passed away in an accident.
"Very much so. She reminded me of my late daughter."
Heinzel remembered his daughter, who had also died in an accident.
"Every time I teased her, saying 'Hey Heinzel, heard that rumor yet?' She'd flinch. So cute."
"Haha, right? Always pretending it wasn't her, when the whole world knew. Hah!"
"How could anyone miss it? She carried around a greatsword twice her size. It's honestly worrying how naive she was."
"Yeah, so innocent. Oblivious to the ways of the world, but always giving her all... So, Luchi, what are you going to do?"
"What is there to think about?"
"Right? Haha!"
Heinzel and Luchi downed the rest of their beers, chuckling to themselves.
Then, Hermila's voice broke their laughter.
"You both got the instructions I mentioned earlier, right?"
"Of course."
"But how are we going to sneak out unnoticed?"
Heinzel replied while Luchi muttered.
"I'm a little worried about Aileen… no, 'Lady Rubia.' There hasn't been any trouble yet, but..."
Hermila's gaze wandered toward where Noah had left.
"It's strange. I can't imagine why such a high-ranking priestess would flee to this backwater village. It seems like she's run away from home."
Heinzel slung his halberd over his shoulder.
"The people looking for this runaway priestess seemed pretty damn serious, though."
Luchi said as he pulled a sword from the ground.
"Yes. Now then, let me make it official."
Hermila's voice echoed through the guild, where the bodies of Imperial knights lay scattered.
"This is a special request. The assigned adventurers are Heinzel, Platinum rank, and Luchi, Platinum rank."
The two platinum-ranked adventurers grabbed their request forms.
"The task is to escort Priestess Rubia and Shin Noah. The condition is to avoid detection. This is a covert mission."
"So, as long as we don't kill any of those Imperial knights, right?"
Heinzel grabbed one of the unconscious knights by the collar and lifted him.
"I can handle it, but Heinzel, do you think you can manage?"
Luchi took the knight from Heinzel and tossed him back on the ground.
"Well, accidents happen, you know. Hah!"
"True enough. It's been unbearably hot lately."
The two adventurers bantered with half-serious smiles as they casually left the guild.
The only sound left inside the silent guild was Hermila's sigh.