Chapter 4. Escape and Service (10)

“Then let’s do this.”

I picked up a strawberry, chewed it, swallowed it, and said.

“You don’t need to set such conditions.”

“Huh?”

At my words, Gloria’s eyes blinked.

“It’s okay even without conditions like building a church beyond that.”

Well, even if I don’t think about it, the government of this country is probably thinking about it.

Even considering treaties, they can exert limited influence within them. There’s no need to exert military influence.

Instead, they’re probably thinking about acquiring the rights to develop the large estates of nobles beyond, or opening up new markets to sell various things, or developing land.

Since the princess has crossed over, that plan will gain more momentum.

Naturally, I will stay out of it. In the first place, I have no intention of becoming a Saint right now, so if I only think about staying away, I can keep a distance.

“I’ll help you find a job. I don’t know what the government will think about it, but I can’t do anything about that.”

“Uh…”

Gloria looked at Ria with a slightly bewildered expression.

Ria shrugged her shoulders and then also popped a strawberry into her mouth.

“Wait a minute. So, you mean you’ll help me without any special conditions?”

“That’s right.”

“Uh… perhaps you don’t know your own position? I did research you to some extent before saying this…”

It’s something she could have heard from anyone that I have a good reputation among hunters. Plus, since I’m in a position to rise very high within the convent, it must have been more appealing.

Who wouldn’t know that?

“I know. Regardless of what people in the government or church think, if I say a word to the association, they’ll probably give me a job. It’s not forbidden, after all.”

Although she’s a princess, Gloria is using the title ‘noble’ here. The title ‘princess’ was a secret.

Although they might assign escorts, in the main story, there were no such people around Gloria. In fact, once the gate completely closed, the ‘value’ seen by the people of this country might not be that high. All assumptions are only meaningful if there’s a way to go beyond the gate.

So, in a nutshell, it’s highly likely that there will be ‘no major problems.’

Besides-

“What’s so difficult about saying a word?”

Yes. If I’m going to take Gloria out, I’ll eventually have to go outside too.

The right to move relatively freely outside is coming my way, so why would I reject it?

“…….”

Gloria looked at me quietly with a slightly dazed expression.

She had even forgotten she was eating,

*

I actually like walking quite a bit.

It was the same in my past life. Of course, I didn’t do crazy things like walking to a distant workplace, but on days that weren’t too hot, when I had time, I liked to go out and stroll around.

Even in this world, if I could walk to the association headquarters, I would have done so. The headquarters was a little less than an hour away on foot.

“Hey, no matter what, that would be too difficult.”

When I expressed my thoughts, Ria waved her hand and replied.

“Yeah, I thought so.”

I also shrugged my shoulders.

Although I still officially hold the title of ‘candidate,’ I am a person of considerable importance within this religious order.

Even if I have escorts by my side, walking to a distant place carries too much risk.

Most importantly, I am not someone for whom such a position is important.

It’s obvious that anyone in the world would want someone who can add an extra life to them in a dangerous moment. In that sense, anyone could target me.

……This is not something that appeared in the novel, but there are actual cases in this world.

When it was said that the gate opened frequently and the survival of this world was threatened, before the religious order was properly established.

There were people who thought that the flesh, bones, and blood of those who could use holy power could be used for some kind of magical purpose.

Now, ‘such things’ hardly happen, but there’s a reason why the government still allows the religious order to directly lead knight orders.

Taking a minibus, which the church uses for group travel, we headed to the association.

The association where Lee Si-yoon and his childhood friend Han Yu-ri belong.

Hunter Association ‘Horizon’.

Although it’s considered top-tier in this country, its scale isn’t the ‘absolute’ largest.

Of course, even if it’s not the largest, it’s still ‘large,’ but the most important thing about this association is that the hunters belonging to it are of very good caliber.

Then, why could a low-ranking hunter like Lee Si-yoon join? It’s because Lee Si-yoon’s parents were very successful hunters.

That’s why he was also treated as the ‘weakest.’ Because he couldn’t fully inherit his parents’ abilities.

There’s still a lot of discussion in this world about whether a hunter’s abilities are truly passed down through genetics. There are cases like Ria who inherited skills, and cases where they don’t. The current second generation is still too early to be called second generation.

……Well, anyway.

Thus, where we arrived, there was a moderately large building.

The surrounding buildings are not that large. In fact, the largest building in this area is a affiliated hospital operated by a national university, and others are usually no more than 8 stories high. Even apartments are not that tall in this area.

There are many universities nearby, and there are various restaurants nearby- but after the gate incident, the atmosphere here has become somewhat different from the university district I knew.

“Honestly, shouldn’t we call this place the ‘Association District’ now?”

Ria said with a rather serious expression.

That’s right. There are quite a few association offices in this area. Besides Horizon, or the associations that gave me business cards, there are many associations that rent just one floor or one office.

If this world were a medieval fantasy world, and adventurer associations were densely packed around here, it would feel like there would be a red-light district with poor public safety, but hunters in this world are clearly professionals.

In a sense, because it’s like that, the crime rate is actually much lower than in other places.

“But you said there are many university students?”

“Perhaps because there are many university students, many associations have moved in. Or maybe it’s because there are many research institutes?”

The ones who buy the items obtained from beyond the gate most eagerly are, of course, the natural science universities and graduate schools, and research institutes.

It’s relatively easy to recruit talented personnel, and at the same time, it’s easy to sell acquired materials, so it was inevitable that such a place would form in many ways- or so it was written in the novel.

……Well, the biggest reason is probably that a huge gate appeared nearby, causing the greatest casualties in this country.

Even now, there is a memorial monument in the middle of the park.

We got out of the car and bowed towards the memorial monument. The church people who followed us did the same.

Whether it’s sincere or not, this is something people always do when passing by here. Well, I’ve hardly ever come here.

“…….”

Gloria awkwardly followed the action.

The building was right next to the park. If you call a building an association building, you usually imagine a well-built glass palace, but this building was made of red bricks. That doesn’t mean it’s a house, though.

The interior was quite comfortable.

“Chae-eun!”

As soon as we entered, someone waved their hand towards us and approached.

Kim Hyun-gang. He’s the friend of Ria’s father whom I saw last time.

“Uncle!”

Ria waved back happily and greeted him.

Mr. Kim Hyun-gang, who approached us, bowed lightly towards me.

“Sister.”

“Brother.”

After a brief greeting, Mr. Kim Hyun-gang raised his head again.

His gaze turned to Gloria. Seeing the glint in his eyes, he must have heard the story. After all, the hunters from this association participated in the last operation as well.

Mr. Kim Hyun-gang, who had a brief greeting with Gloria, turned his head back to Ria and me.

“You want to recommend someone, Sister?”

“Yes, Brother.”

I replied lightly.

“Then, shall we hear the details?”

Mr. Kim Hyun-gang said with a slight smile.

“I’ll guide you right away.”

Was he already prepared?

Well, that’s likely. The church wouldn’t have said nothing if I decided to move.

……Somehow, I feel like it’s getting harder to back out.

I suppressed a sigh and followed him.

*

Well, the conversation didn’t take long.

It seems they had already heard stories from various sources. Moreover, they seemed to have received some compensation.

And it’s a party that the association has no reason to refuse.

“Then, shall we end this conversation here? We’ll need to discuss the specific amounts separately. Miss Gloria, you don’t know the currency units of this world accurately yet, do you?”

“Indeed, is that so?”

Gloria nodded.

“Yes, if that’s the case… I’m embarrassed, but I don’t know anything yet.”

“In that case, how about staying with us for a while to experience life here? You don’t get a good sense of money until you actually use it.”

Up to that point, it’s a quite reasonable statement.

Even when traveling abroad, the sense of money can become somewhat strange.

However, after hearing the next sentence, I almost spat out the green tea I had in my mouth.

“I’ll assign children around Miss Gloria’s age to you. Her name is Han Yu-ri, and the other is Lee Si-yoon-“

Ah, damn it.

Is this how the conversation was supposed to go?

Thinking about it, it’s not that strange. A novel needs events that intertwine the heroine and the protagonist.

“Ah, excuse me…!”

As I interrupted the conversation, Mr. Kim Hyun-gang’s words were briefly cut off.

“Uh, well.”

I, who had started the conversation, hesitated for a moment.

“…Since this person is a guest of the church, it would be better for me to be involved, wouldn’t it…?”

And I ended up saying something nonsensical because I couldn’t think of a reason.

……Hmm.

If only I could turn back time.

Seeing Ria laugh as if it were absurd, I thought so.