episode_0067

“Have a nice trip.”

“Okay! Okay, ready to go. Let’s go, Siena!”

“Tsk…”

How long has it been since I had a holiday?

It’s been a while since I’ve been out of the shelter.

Ainel asked as she followed Sienna outside.

“Really, Siena? Are we really going to meet the famous Ilios the Destructor? And Archmage Fiora is coming too?”

“Oh, that’s right? How many times do you have to ask?”

“Well, it can’t be helped. Meeting a famous person that everyone, including adventurers and ordinary people, knows… It’s like a dream.”

“Huh.”

Although she was outwardly ticklish, Sienna couldn’t hide her swelling joy.

How long has it been since we last met?

It’s already been two years since he decided to become a noble, left the adventuring group, and went to find Count Damian.

Of course, we met once in the middle, but it was only a brief encounter.

‘The leader has been here for two years… Fiora has been here for one year…’

From the year after I was baptized in the temple until the day I had my coming of age ceremony.

I have been a member of the Ilios Adventurers Group for over 10 years.

There, I first learned how to handle weapons, how to use magic, what my role as a guide was, and what role I had to play in the dungeon.

For him, who was an orphan, the Ilios Adventurers Club was a home and a refuge.

I kicked that place out.

It was the day after the coming-of-age ceremony at the temple.

“I… will become a noble. If I become a knight, I, an orphan, can become a noble! ”

“Siena…”

“I don’t want to be treated like this anymore. I’m sorry, Leader. If I become a noble, and gain power… I won’t let Leader or Fiora suffer like that anymore…”

“Siena. Whatever you want to be, it’s your dream, so I won’t nag you. But don’t make excuses like it’s for us. Always live for yourself. No matter where you live, and what choices you make, we’ll support you.”

“Yeah…”

There were many times when I regretted it.

The extreme loneliness was natural, and although she came under the esteemed Count Damien, she was treated humiliatingly by his subordinates more than once.

But I gritted my teeth and persevered, and eventually won the competition, was recommended, and came here.

He has not yet become a nobleman.

It hasn’t even been published yet.

What would the leader think if he saw me now?

What should I say?

When Sienna received a letter saying that the group would be staying nearby for a few days, her mind was in turmoil.

“Wow, I get to meet Lord Ilios… Hehe. I’m so excited. I’ve wanted to meet you ever since I was in the Adventurers’ Group. Thank you so much, Siena. You’re my hero.”

That’s why.

I decided to take Ainel with me, who was whining that she couldn’t come with me.

Actually, I wanted to take Amber and Hannah with me and introduce them to my colleagues who have the same dream as me.

I would have done so even if Ember and Hannah hadn’t refused to let me go, saying they had to train today too.

“Ainel.”

“Yeah!”

“You shouldn’t say weird things. Like, “The instructor hit us” or something like that.”

“Why are you saying that? My skills have improved so much thanks to you, instructor. Shouldn’t I be the one who should be saying that? You and Amber are always the ones who curse at the instructor.”

“Ah, anyway!”

“Okay, don’t worry. I won’t.”

So we arrived at an old inn with a tavern about 30 minutes’ walk from the training center.

Even before I opened the door and went in, I got goosebumps all over my body.

“Hahahaha. What did I say?”

“Shut up, you idiot. You’ll get hit next time!”

“Then it rains a lot again, right? Puhahaha!”

The noise can be heard from the street.

And familiar voices.

I opened the door and went inside.

Everyone’s eyes are simultaneously turned to her.

“Siena!?”

“Oh my, who is this? It’s our cute Sienna!”

“Shut up you little shits! Sienna’s here! Sienna! ”

Sienna shivered, holding back tears that threatened to burst forth.

Ainel, who was following behind, was dumbfounded by the sudden enthusiastic cheering.

“It’s been… a… long time… everyone.”

Finally, unable to hold it in any longer, tears flowed down from her eyes.

* * *

Although the exterior was extremely worn and looked as if it was about to collapse at any moment, the quality of the food served on the table was truly astonishing.

It was exactly the kind of inn Ilios would choose.

He valued substance over appearance, and was of the opinion that he would rather sleep on the street than go hungry.

As the conversation continued for a long time, the initial awkwardness disappeared as if it had been washed away.

It’s been a whole 10 years.

We’ve been together for 10 years.

With just a few words exchanged, Sienna blended into the atmosphere as if she had been a member of the adventuring group just yesterday.

“Pink hair, I’m seeing this for the first time!”

“Hehehe. Thank you.”

“Huh? You didn’t compliment me?”

“Ah… is that… it?”

“Hahahaha. Just kidding, just kidding.”

The surprising thing was Ainel.

Perhaps because of his memories of having been a part of an adventure group for the past two years, he didn’t shy away from the place full of strangers and just blended in with the atmosphere.

“He just said, ‘You four, come at me at once. I’ll take care of it by myself.’ And then he really took care of the four of us by himself?”

“Wow… Looks like you’re quite the skilled instructor, huh? ”

“That’s right, I said. I thought it was some kind of pervert.”

“Puhahahaha. What pervert? Isn’t that guy a noble?”

“Ahh! This, this is an absolute secret! You all know that, right!?”

In particular, Sienna found Ainel’s praise for Instructor Adrian so unfiltered that she couldn’t help but be dumbfounded.

What the hell is that fucking kid praising so much?

It was tilted.

I was worried because it was Ainel who suffered the most violence from the instructor, but it was a needless worry.

Even without that, hadn’t that girl Ainel been completely obsessed with that guy for some time now?

I’m so absorbed in it that it almost feels like a religion now.

“Advanced potion?”

“Yes. Give some to the injured person. One bottle each.”

Then the air around them suddenly became cold.

“Hey, don’t lie. No matter how rich you are, you still spend that much money and precious money on training. You must be crazy. This is a joke.”

“That’s right. You were surprised, Ainel.”

“I’m telling you the truth? Sienna, you tell me too.”

“…It’s true.”

At that moment, shouts of shock echoed from all over the place.

“You guys… Do you know how much a bottle costs?”

“How much is it that you’re all making such a fuss about? Is it more expensive than an intermediate potion?”

Sienna felt puzzled by the surprised faces of her former colleagues.

She herself was not in charge of supplies, and was much younger than her colleagues, so she was not in the habit of haggling over the prices of supplies.

Especially since I had never seen a high-level potion in my ten years of adventure, I had no way of knowing its price.

‘In the first place… there are many people in our adventure group who can use healing magic, right? That was the pride of the Ilios Adventure Group.’

No matter how effective a potion is, it is difficult to defeat a single healer of moderate skill.

Of course, it would be the icing on the cake if you could use both at the same time.

Potions are just a temporary measure that you prepare in advance and carry with you in case you can’t heal right away.

At least as far as Sienna knows.

‘Well… the potion that kid gave me was really effective, but…’

“At the current price, one bottle would cost 30 gold?”

“What?”

Sienna jumped up and shouted.

It was that shocking.

An intermediate potion costs 1 gold.

Even this is quite expensive. 30 gold for a bottle of high-quality potion?

“It used to be around 25 gold, but it’s gotten more expensive recently. So we’re worried that something might go wrong.”

“It seems like nobles are doing priestly rituals here and there. Recently. Well, it has nothing to do with us who only use intermediate potions.”

Sienna couldn’t recover from the shock for a while.

‘What’s that kid…?’

Are you just giving away something that costs 30 gold per bottle?

Even if you are a noble and rich person, it is like that.

Her head just couldn’t make sense of it.

It’s not that Sienna doesn’t know anything, she just doesn’t care about the prices of high-quality potions.

No one knows better than you how much 30 gold is worth.

‘I know that even if you become a knight and serve as a bodyguard for a high-ranking noble, you won’t receive that kind of money…’

It may vary from person to person, but 30 gold is equivalent to a year’s salary for an average knight.

‘What the heck? Adrian Floyd…’

Slowly turning my head, I saw the only pink haired person in here and my roommate.

I locked eyes with Ainel.

“As expected, our instructor.”

Sienna finally felt a little bit more understanding of her feelings.

Why did Ainel worship that man, even though she was beaten so much, covered in sweat, mud, and blood every day, and even though her ribs were broken and she almost died?

“Tsk…”

But I didn’t want to admit it right away.

Because of that guy, I couldn’t even sleep properly because of the pain.

I had to wake up at dawn and run to the training ground even though there was blood in my urine.

If I hadn’t had the grand dream of becoming a nobleman, I would never have been able to endure those painful days.

‘I don’t know…’

The commotion was brief.

The conversation went on for a while, and before we knew it, the food on the table was gone.

Some people got drunk and passed out, while others went outside to get some air.

And on one side, Ilios, the leader of the adventure group who had been quietly drinking, approached Siena to find out what was going on.

“Siena. I think I’ll check my skills after a long time. What do you think?”

“Okay.”

Honestly, I was confident.

He has become incomparably stronger than he was two years ago.

So my body was stiff.

Although my stomach was bloated from overeating, I wanted to show my leader my grown-up self right away.

“Me too! Can I watch it with you? Ilios-sama!”

“Of course, Ainel.”

So the four of them headed to the empty lot.

Fiora, who followed furthest behind, had the role of creating a barrier to prevent damage to the surrounding area.